Project BETA
by Cactuslotus
Summary: After finding a mysterious book, John, Rose, Dave and Jade developed strange powers. Of course, agents quickly are on the case. Will the kids be able to keep under the radar? (Warning: contains cursing and dark material in later chapters)
1. The Unexpected Find

"Are you sure you can watch them all? Four seven-year olds will be quite a hassle." Dad Egbert asked, watching as John ran off to join in a game with Jade, Dave and Rose.

"I'm sure. I've got 'em covered." Mom Lalonde told the three. "Besides, you guys need a guy night. I won't even drink."

"You swear you're not going to drink?" Bro Strider questioned.

"I swear. No worries, I'll watch 'em real close." Mom stated seriously. She wasn't carrying her usual martini glass, which added to her emphasis. "Now go have fun. You to Harley! Bye!" Mom waved goodbye as Dad, Bro, and Grandpa Harley hesitantly left.

Mom went back inside, closing the door to her house behind her. She turned around, seeing the kids play some game about trapping mice together, focusing on the game. She sat down, flipping open her wizard book and digging in.

- 2 hours later-

"Mom? Hello?" Rose called loudly, feet from her sleeping mother. Mom had started drinking an hour ago starting with juice she had poured alcohol in a previous night, but hadn't seemed to remember doing so, then continued on to other drinks until passing out on the couch. "She is going to be out awhile."

"Are you sure?" John asked, looking over at Mom nervously.

Rose nodded. "What do you guys want to do now?"

"Maybe we could play hide and seek!" Jade suggested. "There are plenty of places to hide."

"Not it!" Rose, Jade and John yelled quickly, Dave now stuck as it.

"Fine." Dave covered his pointed Kamina shades with his hands before turning the other way. "One, two, three..." Rose, John, and Jade ran in different directions, scrambling to find the best hidding place. Jade crawled under Rose's bed, while Rose hid behind the kitchen counter.

John looked around, trying to find the best hiding spot. "...twenty, twenty- one, twenty-two..." John could hear Dave as he approached the end of his counting. John saw a string dangling from the ceiling, curiously jumping up and grabbing it as he fell back down. A panel opened up as a ladder slid down from the ceiling. John scrambled up the ladder into the room, staring at the heaps off books, little wizard figurines and a few closed boxes. Thoughts of hide-and-go-seek were forgotten as he looked around, curious about what was up here. His eyes fell on a large book in the middle of the floor.

"Found you." Dave said as he reached the top of the ladder, Rose and Jade following him up. They walked over to John, quickly noticing the strange book. It was a thick, leather bound book with strange symbols around a circle on the cover, a house burnt in the middle. The pages were faded yellow, tattered on the edges.

"What's this book?" John thought aloud, looking over the book before flipping it open. The pages were covered in strange symbols- definitely not any language they had seen before.

"Maybe it has something to do with zodiacs? Those were the symbols on the cover." Rose suggested. Rose, Jade and Dave squeezed in around John as they looked over the book together, trying to find something readable.

"Zodiacs?" John asked confused.

"They're symbols that go with your birthday. I don't know which ones go were though." Rose added. They all looked over the book closely. As they flipped to the last page they noticed English written in large, black letters.

"If you wish for special powers, continue on with caution." John read aloud. The kids exchanged shocked expressions.

"Keep going." Rose leaned closer, trying to read too.

"This is powerful. There is a bag in tucked in the back of this book." John read, pausing to check the back cover. A smooth black bag was clipped into the back cover. John pulled out the bag then continued. "Inside is a powder. If you eat it, you will develop strange powers. If not, please hide this book. Don't let it fall in the wrong hands. Good luck." John eyed the words a moment before closing the book. "Do you guys think it'll work?"

"I don't think so, but maybe." Rose thought.

"I don' know, it sounds bad." Dave stated. "But I guess it's worth a shot."

"Let's try it!" Jade added excitedly.

John nodded, pouring the lime green powder into each of their hands. They stared at it nervously, but all ate it.

"It tastes gross!" John gagged. Jade started coughing, turning away from the group. Rose looked like she was going to be sick. Dave sat, expressionless and unfazed until everyone calmed down. "Do you guys feel any different?" John asked. Everyone shook their heads no. They climbed back down the ladder, heading off to find something to do. Rose dropped to her knees, holding her head tightly in her hands.

"Rose?" Dave asked in suprise. Rose fell to her side, curled in a ball. The other three rushed to her side, asking what's wrong. After what felt like ages, Rose sat up, wide eyed.

"Your parents are coming soon." Rose blurt out, standing up. Everyone scrambled to Rose's room.

"Roxy? Are you in there?" Bro called as he knocked on the door. He sighed, unlocking the door with the spare she kept in the rose plant nearby. The men walked in to the house, quickly noticing Mom asleep on the couch and several open bottles on the counter. "Oh no." He sighed, turning his head as he heard noise from Rose's room. The men went up stairs, Dad opening Rose's door.

The kids seemed to be deep in a game off Monopoly, John groaning as he stared at the car piece. "Why do you have so many hotels?" John whined.

"Hey, don't like it don't play. Pay up, Egbert." Dave stated. John stood up, flipping the game board as he did so.

"Hi dad!" John called to his father.

"Come on, we're headed home." Dad stated as he pulled John out of the room. Jade hopped up, heading after her grandpa.

"You beat Egbert huh?" Bro asked Dave, who nodded in reply. "Ice cream on the way home. Oh Rose, can you take care of your mother for me?"

"Yup." Rose answered.

"Thanks. Bye Rose." Bro lead Dave out, closing the door behind him. Rose turned on the TV, putting in a tape in the VHS player. She got through an episode and a half of Squiddles before her mother woke. "Everyone went home already." Rose called from the couch.

Mom stood up, hearing the phone a moment later. "Hello?... That sounds great... See 'ya them. Mhm, I ment then... Bye." Mom placed the phone back down. "We're going to the park 'morrow. I'm a talk to that hunk o' man Egbert."

"Mom!" Rose whined, looking over from the couch.

"Calm down." Mom walked over, sitting down next to Rose. "I can't believe I passed out. Well, at least nothing went wrong."


	2. Changes

Rose ran up to John, Jade and Dave. Dave looked back, glancing at the group of guardians talking amongst each other before leading the way under the playground, out of everyone's view along with out of the cold November breeze. Rose pulled her Squiddle jacket tighter while John looked at his own Slimer sweatshirt. Dave sat in his record turtleneck, looking at the bandana tied like a headband around Jade's head as she snuggled into her blue dog head sweater. Everyone spent a moment in silence.  
"Did you all find out your powers?" Rose asked, trying to start up conversation.  
"I almost beat Bro by turning back time." Dave stated quietly.  
"Woah! Can you take us to the time of dinosaurs?" John asked in awe.  
"No Egbert, I can only travel a minute forward or back. What can you do?" Dave looked over at John.  
"One of dad's cakes fell off the table and was going to hit me, but I blew it away with a gust of wind!" John tossed his hands forward as he talked, creating a small gust of wind. "What about you Jade?"  
"Bec stuck by my side when I got home. I started going to different places really fast, and Bec jumped on me and this happened!" Jade pulled off the bandana, revealing two large pointed white dog ears. She pulled off her lime green rain boots, showing her white paws and digitigrade legs, fur running up to her knees along with a fluffy white tail she pulled out of the back of her skirt. "And now Bec's gone!"  
They sat in silence again. "So, I see the future, Dave time travels, John has wind powers and Jade is a magic dog girl." Rose confirmed, the others nodding in agreement.  
"But my grandpa is leaving on his yearly hunting trip tomorrow! How am I supposed to hide this if John's dad or Dave's brother end up watching me? Even Rose's mom would probably find out." Jade tied the bandana back over her ears, then tucking her tail back in and putting her boots back on.  
Rose held her head, crying slightly a moment, grabbing the other kid's attention. She looked back up. "Your staying at my house. I'm really sure we can keep her from finding out."  
"Really?" Jade asked anxiously.

"I don't know Harley, I think Jade should stay with me. She can be quite a handful at times," Dad suggested, ",not that you can't Roxy, it's just that you haven't watched her before."  
"I can total han'le her. Besides, it'll be easy since I don't have to worry about Jaspers hissing at 'er," Mom replied," plus, no smuppet accidents like last year. Lookin' at you Dirk! You messed up."  
Bro frowned. "Hey, it was an accident. I think I played it off pretty well."  
"I'm sure if we asked her she'd still be freaked out." Mom smirked, turning towards Grandpa. "Come on, what could go wrong?"  
"Alright, she can stay with you, Roxy." Grandpa sighed. The guardians looked over to see the kids now playing on the swings, Rose and John sitting as Dave and Jade pushed. "I'm going to leave her with you today. Becquerel has gone missing, and I plan on trying to find him before I leave tomorrow."  
"I understand." Mom nodded. "Come on kids! We're going to go eat." The kids stopped swinging, walking over to the adults slowly. "Jade, your grandpa is leaving now but I'm watchin' you while he's gone."  
Jade nodded, hugging her grandpa. "Bye grandpa!"  
Grandpa smiled. "Good bye, Jade." He rustled some of her hair before pulling a envelope out of his pocket. "I always stay with you until after your birthday is done, but I'm going to try to find Bec before I leave, okay? Be a good girl while I'm gone."  
"I will grandpa." Jade smiled, taking the envelope. Grandpa walked over to his green pick-up truck, pulling a suitcase out of the back and putting it in Mom's small red car. "I'm leaving now, Jade. Good bye, I'll be back in two month." Grandpa hugged Jade.  
"Bye grandpa." Jade hugged back. A moment later her grandpa left in his truck, leaving everyone behind in the park parking lot.  
"Alright kids, let's go, everyone in the car." Mom ushered Rose and Jade in her car, while the other kids and guardians got in their cars. They drove to the same restaurant they went to whenever it was one of the kid's birthdays; Midnight Crew dinner. The restaurant may not seem like a great place on the outside, probably due to the fact it was dark and looked a lot like a pub, but the food was amazing. They walked in, quickly being seated and menus passed out to everyone.  
"Hi folks! How are you all doing?" Deuce started excitedly. Mom whispered something to Deuce, who nodded before speaking again. "Got it. What drinks can I get you?" The everyone ordered soda except Dave, who wanted apple juice. Everyone ordered food as well before Deuce left, order in hand. Everyone had eaten when Deuce came over, Slick scowling as he walked over holding a giant ice cream sundae. "Happy Birthday!" Deuce smiled.  
Slick mumbled something, but Droog was walking by with someone's order and elbowed Slick, muttering something to Slick before continuing on his way. "Happy Birthday, runt." Slick stated, leaving as he shot Droog an angry glance.  
The kids dug into the ice cream. A few times Dave and Rose could feel Jade's tail hit them through her skirt, but luckily the adults didn't seem to notice. Soon the check was payed and they left the restaurant, waving goodbye to each other as they hopped into their separate cars.  
"It's not like you won't see each other tomorrow. You all have the same teacher." Mom commented as she drove then home, bring to Rose and Jade's minds the challenge waiting for tomorrow.


	3. Trouble at school

Dave strolled into class, taking his seat in the back corner of the classroom. The teacher was running late and many of the students talked amongst each other. "Hi Dave!" John turned around in his seat as he said this. "I can't believe you're late!"  
Dave showed John his digital watch, the numbers reading 8:59. "I'm on time." Dave looked at the clock, noticing the hands tick forward at quickened paces. "That can't be right, it's not 11:26 yet." Dave looked from his watch to the school clock.  
"Oh dear. The clock's broken." Ms. Marie, the teacher, mumbled before heading to her desk. She ushered the kids into their seats, starting up the lesson. As it approached lunch, it was up to the teacher to pick group work or silent reading as the last activity till break, the students hoping for groups. "Pull out your books. It's silent reading!" Ms. Marie cheered. The students grumbled as they set to reading. It didn't take long before Dave heard the familiar sounds of Pokemon battle in the desk next to him. He looked over the the girl next to him wearing a blue shirt with red circle that had a line running through it playing her 3DS behind her book, seemingly unaware of the volume.  
"Sam! It's silent reading, so put it away." Ms. Marie snapped, annoyance in her voice.  
"Just one more." Sam replied, eyes not leaving the screen.  
"Sa-" The lunch bell rang over the teacher's voice, students leaving for lunch.  
John, Dave, Jade and Rose left together, far behind the rest of their classmates. "At recess, let's all meet at the big kid playground. No one goes over there, so it's a perfect place to talk." Dave stated, the others nodding in agreement. They hurried through their lunches, heading over to the bigger, farther playground.  
"We should meet over here everyday. No ones ever here!" John looked around the empty playground.  
"It'll keep everyone else from finding out about us." Rose commented.  
"What do you mean?" Jade asked confused.  
"Think about it; John is bullied every day, so he might accidentally use his powers-"  
"Has. I already had to go back." Dave added.  
"Still, you'll only be able to go back so many times before you wear yourself out. The rest of us are picked on also, just not as much, but the same problem stands." Rose hopped down from the step she was on. "So, I agree with John. Let's meet here everyday."  
Everyone agreed, quickly jumping into games of adventure that lasted till the end of recess. The day seemed to last forever. Finally the bell rung and students headed off for home.

Tavros read the report over again. A few clocks around town kept acting up, stopping or hands ticking oddly, along with a pick up in winds all within the past three days. They always sent him in for odd jobs like this. He sighed, closing his laptop before waiting for his partner to come back.  
"Bro, they have motherfucking faygo cupcakes!" Gamzee climbed into the small car, hunched over as he sat in his seat. Now that Tavros thought of it, why did the agency always give them small cars? Gamzee was huge, and even though he was thin, was still always to big for the cars they were assigned.  
"I didn't know faygo cupcakes exist. That's... uh... really cool."  
"I didn't know they were real either. I went to get your coffee, and they were all up and sitting there."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, it's a miracle. Oh, I bought them, too! See?" Gamzee set the coffee cup and faygo bottle in the cup holders before holding up the faygo cupcakes. "They're so many colors..."  
Tavros took a sip of his coffee before pulling out his laptop. "So, there seems to be patterns with the wind and clocks so far, shown by locations and times marked on the maps and charts. The tenant building on 126 Hoc Street has issues with clocks the most, while... Uh... the wind picks up most around 413 Was Drive. Today from 8:30 a.m. to 3:05 p.m. the wind picked up and the clock problems focused on Skaia Elementary school."  
Tavros let Gamzee take take the laptop, looking over the information. "Woah, Tavbro, that's really weird. What if some kids are causing this? We would be all like 'how are you doing that?' and it would be such a motherfucking miracle, cause they probably don't know." Gamzee slipped slowly into silence, staring at his feet.  
"You ... um... could be right." Tavros mumbled, taking his laptop back, starting to reread the files. "But... That can't happen in real life... can it?"  
"I don't know, bro. Just saying." Gamzee snapped open his faygo, listening to the fizz of the carbonation before taking a drink.


	4. A Way Out

A few days went by, wearing John, Rose, Jade and especially Dave out. The chance of being found out increased everyday. Lunch was their one break they didn't have to worry about accidentally slipping up as much. As Rose, John and Jade went over to the big kid playground they noticed Dave waiting for them.

"Hey Dave! How's it going?" John smiled.

Jade froze a second. "Dave... Who's over here?" John and Rose looked at the park for whoever Jade was talking about.

"She says she knows what's going on." Dave walked over to them. "I thought she might be able to help us."

"It's worth a try." Rose sighed. Dave lead the way under the playground to were the girl waited, the glare of the 3DS lights on her glasses.

She looked up, then closed the device. "Hey! Name's Sam. Don't worry about filling me in, 'cause I know all about the powers. Just, how did you guys get them?"

"There's a book in Rose's attic." John blurt out.

"Let me guess, you followed the instructions and got powers, am I right?" Sam asked.

The kids nodded. "Do you know if there's an chance of us returning to normal?" Jade questioned.

"Sorry, zero chance. Zip. Nada. You're stuck with them." The kids grumbled in disappointment. "Hey, it isn't that bad. My word of advice; don't get found out. Someone finds out and your screwed." Sam stood up. "Oh, and keep it on the down low, alright?" She strode away, unfazed by the conversation.

"She is right. It's best to not get caught. It would end badly." Rose noted.

"How do yo- oh yeah." John trailed off, looking off in another direction.

"I'll see if I can find someone. This is happening." Dave stated as the bell rung.

...hours later...

Jade stood up, terrified but now wide awake. Quickly she realized it was very cold. She realized she was in the park near Rose's house; her powers kept taking her places when she was scared, but never when she wanted to. Her pajama dress only went to her knees, leaving her ears and legs clearly visible.

...moments earlier...

Tavros worked on his computer, sitting on a park bench. The cool air helped him think, which was just what he needed for this case. Gamzee might have been right, Tavros thought after going over the information. The phenomenon followed a pattern that could easily be two kids going from place to place- no, it had to be something else, something more realistic. He heard a soft crackle of electricity, looking up at the sound. A little girl stood in the cold, looking around nervously.

Tavros walked over slowly, quickly noticing her paws and ears. "Uh... Hi there. Are you okay?" The girl looked over, frightened.

"Oh no." She muttered, starting to shake.

"Hey, it's alright. Are you lost?" Tavros kneeled down, trying not to scare the girl. "Do you need help?"

"I have to get home." The girl seemed to think a while. "I can't remember the way home." She seemed to start panicking.

"Hey, calm down. Maybe I could call your parents? Do you know their phone number?" Tavros asked, pulling out his phone.

The girl quickly went into panic. Suddenly she disappeared in a flash of green sparks. Tavros dialed up one of his contacts, hurrying back to his computer. "Hello, Tavros. What do you got?" Vriska asked.

"I think I need back up."

Jade calmed down, realizing she was now close to Rose's house. She walked down the street in silence, hoping no one else saw her. Finally she found Rose's house, knocking on the door. Mom opened the door, clearly tired and drunk. Jade walked to the guest room without a word, promptly falling asleep.

"I think I found someone." Dave stated as John, Rose and Jade walked up to the playground. Dave disappeared under the slide, returning with a girl in a long blue green dress.

"Hello, my name is Zecora. I was informed of your problem and will try to help the best I can." Zecora gave a slight smile.

"She'll be joining us at lunch. She thinks we might be able to get rid of our powers, or at least get them under control." Dave added.

Rose sighed," Alright. It's worth trying."

(Authors note: Zecora is an OC of Speretmoon. Also, thank you to anyone reading the story; I didn't expect so many people.)


	5. Stopped Clocks

(Authors note: Zecora is Speretmoon's OC)

Time ticked by as John, Rose, Dave and Jade spent their lunches with Zecora, trying to deal with their powers. Rose's headaches lessened slightly in intensity while John gained better control of his powers, helping him prevent "accidents". So far though, none of them could find anything to make their powers go away.  
It reached Dave's birthday when Zecora informed them she found something big, which she was going to show them when they get to the big kid playground. John ran up to Dave, excited. "Happy Birthday Dave!" John smiled, handing him a small box. "I would have given it to you earlier, but Ms. Marie would have made me save it till lunch anyway."  
Dave opened the box, putting on the round shades inside. "These are cool, John." Dave gave on of his rare smiles.  
"Save it nerds!" Someone said, punching John, who revealed himself just as Jade and Rose had rushed up. Dave turned time back, in fact he tried several times. Every time he jumped back it was slightly different, but still John was revealed, and twice Jade. Eventual he was too exhausted to jump anymore, hoping there was a chance of escape this time. Dave gave a small smile before quickly turning to the approaching bully.  
"Leave us alone." Dave stated  
The kid sneared,"Make me." He tried punching John, but Dave launched a kick to the stomach, knocking the kid breathless. "Hey!" Dave already knew two kids would jump in, quickly stepping in to defend John.  
"Run, now." Dave told John, quickly getting a head shake no.  
"I can't just let them attack you!" John hissed quietly. The other kids jumped head first into the fight, leaving no chance for John to leave now. Dave could see Rose and Jade running over out of the corner of his eye. Dave quickly punched the second kid in the nose before kneeing him in the stomach. John almost seemed to be dancing around the other kid, just out of reach as the kid would plow past. The one on the ground yanked John's feet out from under him. It was at that moment that Jade had reached John.  
John caught himself mid fall with a gust of wind, surprising Jade. Jade disappeared, her dress, boots, sweater and bandana falling to the ground. Rose fell over with a headache, only drawing more kids to the area, along with several adults

Tavros and Gamzee walked up to the main office, stopping when they heard sparks. Tavros looked up, seeing the girl from earlier, standing in shorts and a tank top on one of the pillars infront of the school. "Uh... Are you okay up there?" Tavros asked, slightly confused.  
"Please help me." The girl whimpered, tail tucked between her legs.  
"We'll get you down." Tavros called as he looked around.

Dave, Rose, John, Dad, and Bro sat uncomfortably, two large agents standing in the back of the principals office while the principle, Mrs. Ann, read over the report she had been handed. Dave had grabbed Jade's clothes before one of the creepy agents dragged him to the office, keeping them by his chair. The door opened and in marched two more agents and Jade who was rapped in the shorter one's coat.  
"Jade!" The kids yelled, relieved and upset to see the scared dog girl as she took her seat next to Dave.  
"Please tell me someone grabbed my clothes." Jade looked over at the kids, Dave quickly handing them to her.  
Mrs. Ann sighed," Where is Miss Lalonde?" In answer, the door flung open as Mom strode in, collapsing into her chair. "Miss Lalonde, are you drunk?"  
"Pfft, no! I'm drinking; grammar Ann, grammar!" Mom tossed back the rest of her drink.  
"I hate to inform you, but all the kids have super power according to this report." The parents seemed confused.  
"I haven't seen any si-" Dad started, interrupted by John's sneeze, sending him two feet up. "Oh. I believe you now."  
"I time travel." Dave whispered.  
"Really? That's boss little man." Bro fist bumped Dave.  
"This is serious! Your children are being taken away because they are a threat to those around them along with themselves!" Mrs. Ann exclaimed. "They called you so you could say goodbye to them before they're taken away! You literally have a minute."  
"You can't just take my baby!" Mom glared at the agents.  
"I won't let you take them away!" Bro jumped to his feet, quickly tackled by two agents. The other two dragged the kids out of the office, loading them into the van kicking and screaming. The van drove off just as Bro had made it out the door.


	6. Captured

John, Rose, Dave and Jade sat in silence for most of the drive, exchanging frightened glances and occasionally looking over at the agents in the van. The doors opened to a plain, large facility surrounded by tall fences. The kids were quickly taken inside and lead to separate rooms, which just had a bed standing in the far corner.

John sat nervously as the doctor, Feferi, went over her report, long brown hair blocking her face from view. "Hello John! Do you feel any different since you gained powers?" Feferi looked up from her papers, pen in hand.  
"N-no." John looked around, shifting in his spot on the examination table.  
"There's nothing to be scared of John, I'm just making sure you're okay." Feferi approached, stethoscope in her ears before checking John's breathing. John pulled away, scared by the strange place and people. "I need you to calm down. I know it's been a stressful day, but relax please." John nodded quickly, breath caught in his throat. "Take deep breaths, calm down." Feferi waited for John to calm down, but still the room seemed to close in on him as she check his heart. "Hm... I'm going to have to take some blood, alright John?"  
John watched Feferi grab a small syringe and pale bandage, setting them down on the small table before she held out her hand for John. "I d-don't want t-to." John started shaking, staring at the syringe as Feferi tried to get hold of his arm.  
"I need to, okay? I pinkie promise it will only hurt a little." Feferi smiled comfortingly.  
"I want-t to g-go home." John looked up at her, on the verge of tears.  
"Oh, John, it's okay. Here, I'll give you a lollipop if you promise to sit still." John nodded, getting a red and green lollipop from Feferi before she held his other arm, wiping a spot on his arm before drawing a small vial of blood.

Rose looked around the room quickly before looking at Feferi's scrubs. "Hello Rose! Do you feel any different since you gained powers?" Feferi pulled up her bright pink pen, ready to write.  
"No." Rose stared at the pen as it moved.  
"Kids at school noticed you having moments were you seemed to hurt really bad, can you explain?" Feferi asked with concern, pen disappearing from view.  
"That's how my power works." Rose sighed, looking over at the small cabinets.  
"Can you tell me more?" Feferi pressed.  
"My head hurts, then I see what's going to happen." Rose rushed through, uncomfortable with the room around her.  
"Alright." Feferi held the cold stethoscope to Rose's skin, checking her breathing, then her heart. "I'm going to have to take some blood, okay Rose?" Feferi pulled out a syringe and bandage from one of the cabinet before wiping her arm with a sterile wipe.  
"No, but your going to anyway." Rose sighed before letting Feferi draw the vial.

Dave pulled at the the plain white clothes they had the kids change into, trying to find a distraction from the spiral of events around him. "Hello Dave! Do you feel any different since you gained powers?" Feferi cheered, smiling widely.  
"I feel like you people kidnapped kids for being different, but other than that no." Dave snapped, staring her down behind his shades.  
Feferi sighed," I'm just the doctor." She checked his breathing and heart for what felt like eternity. She pulled out a syringe and bandage as she talked "I'm going to have to take some blo-"  
"Hell no." Dave felt himself stiffen in his spot, struggling to keep up his cool kid fascade.  
"Dave, it-" Feferi started explaining.  
"Nope, nope, nope." Dave stood up on the examination table, pressing himself into the corner, somehow still straight faced through his internal panic, gaze on the syringe.  
"Dave, please. It'll just take a moment, okay?" Feferi tried reassuring Dave as she approached him, supplies still within reach.  
"Let me think... no." Dave stated. Feferi sighed, trying to get Dave to hold still, but he pulled from her grip every time.  
"Sit still!" Feferi huffed, exasperated. The door clicked open, Eridan stepping in as he pulled on the edge of his jacket.  
"I could hear you two from down the hall. Need any help, Fef?" Eridan giving Dave an annoyed glance.  
Feferi nodded, Eridan stepping forward to hold him still. Dave kicked Eridan squarely in the jaw, but Eridan grabbed Dave and pulled him tightly against him with Dave's arm stretched out for Feferi, knocking his shades off in the process. Dave froze, noticing Eridan staring at his wide red eyes. His fascade dropped completely, leaving him shaking as he felt a cool surface wipe his arm, followed by a sharp pinch as Feferi drew the vial.

Jade stared at her paws, feeling out of place and exposed in her medical gown. "So, Jade, Do you feel any different since you gained powers?" Feferi's gaze fell on Jade, staring at her odd features.  
"Yes. I'm sure it's because of being part dog." Jade felt her tail pull closer and her ears flick down.  
"Can you explain what feels different?" Feferi continued, not missing a beat.  
"I can smell and hear really well, and feel a lot like a dog sometimes." Jade's ears were now pinned to her head.  
"How did you become part dog?" Feferi asked, gaze unwavering.  
"I'm not really sure." Jade mumbled, heart in her throat.  
Feferi checked Jade's breathing, quickly switching the stethoscope to her heart. "I'm going to have to take some blood, okay?" Feferi pulled out the syringe, setting it on the table before reaching to get something else.  
Jade immediately backed up on the steel examination table. "No!"  
"Jade calm-" Feferi started, but Jade disappeared. "Jade?!" Jade looked around at the gravelly ground, turning around to see a tall fence. "Jade... Right?" Jade turned to see Eridan behind her. "Come on, your supposed to be getting your check up." Eridan ushered her back inside, leading her down the hall.  
Eridan brought Jade back into the small white room. "Jade, I still need to take blood, so please calm down." Feferi's voice sounded. Jade shook her head no, backing into the large back wall.  
"Need help, Fef?" Eridan asked, glancing between the two eagerly.  
"Give me a minute; Jade, as soon as it's over, you get to be with your friends, okay?" Jade stayed next to the wall, frozen in place as Feferi drew the vial, filling it with red.

"Are you serious?" Karkat groaned, tossing the report onto the break room table.  
"It can't be that bad KK," Sollux smirked, sipping his coffee," bethideth, how bad could your thientitht work be?"  
"Says the guy who does computer work and watches the security surveillance."  
"Oh thut up! After Jade'th athident thith morning, all the kidth are getting tracking collarth I have to keep an eye on. Thtarting tomorrow."  
"Alright Tholloth." Karkat snickered.


	7. Starting Up

(Authors note: thanks so much you guys! I still can't believe I have so many people reading my story.)

The kids ate in the strange large room that looked like an oversized kindergarten class room. Aradia sat near the door, reading an old leather bound book.  
"Why do we all have to wear these?" John complained, feeling the strange metal collar clipped around his neck.  
"Probably so we can't run away." Rose stated before staring at her cereal.  
"I can't believe they wouldn't give you your shades." Jade grumbled as she tugged at her collar, annoyed by its presence.  
"They couldn't handle so much cool kid at once." Dave replied.  
The kids didn't get much more time before The door opened, and in walked a tall woman with long blond hair. "So, John is supposed to come with me." John looked over at the woman," I'm Vriska. Come on, let's get going!" John hopped up, being lead away by Vriska.  
A short woman with red lenses and short hair walked in next. "Dave come here," she held up his shades," I'm pretty sure these are yours, cool kid." Dave walked over. "I'm Terezi." Terezi gave a wide smile as she lead Dave off.  
"Rose? Come with me please." A tall woman with short black hair walked in, Rose hopping up and walking over. "My name is Kanaya." Rose and Kanaya left the room.  
Jade heard feet pounding from down the hall, stopping a moment at the door before stepping in. "Jade, get over here. I'm Karkat, now come on." Jade begrudgingly followed Karkat down the hallway.

"Show me that again." Vriska watched excitedly as John threw his hands forward, a gust of wind knocking papers off her mess of a table. "That's awesome! Hold on, I'm supposed to hook up all these sensors and shit."  
John took a few steps back, shaking his head. "I don't want to."  
Vriska stepped forward, crouching down to John's height, concern on her face. "John, I have to. It's all for your sake, believe me, I don't want to as much as you." John looked up at Vriska, reassuring smile on her face. John sat still as he felt several sharp pricks on his chest before Vriska took a step back, looking over at the monitors sitting against the wall. The room seemed to be closing in on him, his gaze shifting constantly as he toyed with the edge of his shirt. "Alright, do the windy thing!"  
John tossed his hands forward, laughing nervously when the gust of wind fluffed Vriska's hair and tossed it every which way. Vriska laughed and John laughed too, both completely caught off guard.

"Dave, it's not like this is that bad." Terezi tried getting Dave to hold still as he kept pulling free of her grip.  
"Hell no. I'm not letting you stick a bunch of wires on me." Dave crawled under the examination table in the far corner, hidden from Terezi's sight. He took a deep breath, hoping she couldn't find him under the low table, pleading silently that he wouldn't be found.  
He felt a warm hand grab his ankle, dragging him out from under the table. "Nice try, cool kid. Next time don't breath so loudly." Terezi picked him up, placing him on the very table he had been hiding under.  
"I wasn't loud, you just have ninja senses or some shit." Dave looked around, slowly backing into the corner.  
"Wow Dave. I'm pretty sure most people could hear a deep breath in a silent room." Terezi had brought over the monitors, leaving Dave uneasy.  
"I'm still not letting you." Dave stated, gaze locked on the hand full of wires in Terezi's hand.  
"Look, if I have to restrain you I will, but lets not go there. How about you cooperate?" Terezi smiled. Dave rewound time a few times, but it always ended up just like this; him cornered, and Terezi smiling eerily.  
"Oh? And how do you plan on restraining me?" Dave glared from behind his shades.  
"Dave, two words. Look down." Terezi smiled like she's won. Dave looked down, noticing straps tucked into the sides. He was tired from jumping back so many times, not even noticing where he sat, completely trapped. "So, how about a compromise? I'll let you play on this," Terezi pulled an iPod from her pocket, twirling it in her hand," if you cooperate with me. Deal?"  
"Will there be internet in this agreement?" Dave asked, eyeing the electronic.  
"I'll add it in due time." Terezi continued to twirl it between her fingers.  
"Deal." Dave blurt out. Terezi smiled before handing him the device, picking up the wires. Dave froze as he felt pricks on his chest.  
"Alright... Can you show me how you time jump?" Terezi asked eagerly.

Rose shifted uncomfortably, not happy with being hooked up to the many sensors or Kanaya's concerned stare. "Rose, are you sure you're alright?" Kanaya asked as she checked the monitors.  
"I'm fine, Kanaya." Rose breathed in, then out, trying not to think about the monitors.  
"How do your abilities work? Do you have some sort of control over them or do they just come and go?" Kanaya seemed very interested in these questions, full attention on Rose.  
"It usually happen when I want to know what will happen." Rose looked around the room slowly in distraction.  
"Is there some outcome you want to know?" Kanaya asked, seeming to press on with the matter. Rose sighed, knowing that Kanaya was trying to see her abilities in effect. The only question in Rose's mind was if her friends and herself would escape this place, so she thought of it. Her head felt as if it was about to burst, her hands flying up to hold her head. "Rose?!" Kanaya's voice seemed distant, far off in another place entirely. The pain edged away, leaving Rose with an anwser as it left.  
"Rose! Are you alright?" Kanaya had raised her voice, kneeling in front of Rose.

Equius lead Jade back into the room for the fourth time, practically caring her. She was exhausted, too tired to fight back unlike the other three times. Panic hit when she once again spotted the wires.  
"Thanks Equius. Again." Karkat sighed before Equius left. Jade slowly stepped over towards the side of the room. "You know your nails click with every step you take." Karkat turned to Jade, annoyance written across his features. "Can you please, for the love of whatever you hold dear, stop fucking teleporting? I even said please this time."  
"I don't control it!" Jade exclaimed," It just... happens!"  
Karkat groaned, exasperated. "You know what? I don't care anymore. I need to find a way to keep you from teleporting off anyway. Maybe you'll figure out how to control it along the way or something!" Karkat crouched down in front of Jade. "I need you to work with me, alright? Or at least sit still. Can you do that for me?"  
Jade didn't move, she didn't know if it was her lack of energy or fright, but even when Karkat hooked up the monitors she stayed still.  
"Okay, we're finally getting somewhere." Karkat started flipping through his papers.

Gamzee strode down the hall, walking into the break room to get some faygo. As he opened the door, Nepeta ran into him, falling over. Gamzee caught her mid fall, but her papers scattered everywhere. "You need help there?" Gamzee smiled.  
"That would be great!" Nepeta smiled, dropping to her knees along with Gamzee, picking up the paper and files.  
"You and Tavbro do files, right?"  
"Yup. Why?"  
"No reason. Just wanted to know. Here you go." Gamzee handed Nepeta the stack of papers before heading into the breakroom to grab his soda.


	8. Where the Hell Did You Go?

Jade's eyes flew open to the sound of a blaring car horn, snapping her wide awake as she backed away from the dark road. Her heart pounded in her chest as she hid behind a tree, completely lost in the unfamiliar surroundings. The collar around her neck sounded with slight static before a voice sounded," Jade? Can you hear me?"  
"Yes." Jade whispered, looking over at the road.  
"You teleported out of the fathility. Equiuth ith on hith way to get you, tho thit tight, alright?"  
"Equius?" Jade looked around in the night, able to see surprisingly well.  
"Yeth. Remember your grandpa'th car?"  
"Mhm."  
"Look for a car that lookth jutht like it but black."  
"Okay. Um... what's your name?"  
"Thollucth."  
"... Sollux?"  
"Yeth." A black pick up truck pulled up before Jade heard the door open, seeing Equius. "Go with Equiuth, alright Jade?"  
"Can I ask something first?"  
"Go for it."  
"When can I see my grandpa?" Sollux paused after hearing the question, and Jade's heart dropped.  
"... I'll try to see if he can visit soon, alright?"  
"Thank you Sollux!" Jade smiled excitedly before going over to the truck. Equius picked her up, buckling her in before hopping in the car. Jade drifted off, exhausted by her little adventure.

Jade sat up sleepily in her room, hearing someone at the door. She walked over, listening to the click of her nails against the hard concrete floor. The door opened, Karkat standing there with his clipboard. "Karkat?" Jade asked, rubbing her eyes.  
"Yes, it's me. Until I can find out how to keep you from teleporting out of the facility you're coming with me in mornings, especially after last night's events." Karkat held Jade's hand, leading her to the room. Several things were set up, all potential 'blockers' as Karkat called them. "Let's see how this goes." Karkat grumbled, having Jade stand in the center of several circles of strange materials before heading over to his desk.  
"Can you stop scaring me though?" Jade sighed, looking around her. It hadn't taken long for Karkat to realize her teleporting was in response to something surprising or frightening. Jade was catching on, but she still lacked control of her abilities.  
"I'm not trying to scare you so much as surprise you, and until you can figure out how to teleport at will, we are limited on options." Karkat dug around in his desk drawer before pulling out a toy gun.  
"That's going to be loud, isn't it?" Jade eyed the toy, watching as Karkat locked it.  
"Ready?" Karkat stated.  
"Don't do it."  
"Set..." Karkat started pulling on the trigger. Jade wanted to smack it out of his hand, and next thing she knew, she was within reach, promptly smacking the toy pistol to the ground. Karkat stared wide eyed. "Jade?"  
"What?" Jade glared at the toy pistol.  
"You teleported on your own!" Karkat had a grin on his face.  
Realization dawned on Jade. "I did it!" She cheered, jumping up and down with excitement before looking at the scattered materials. "But that means that none of those materials you picked work."  
"It also means no more fucking annoying as hell 'surprises' every time." Karkat set to picking up the materials and setting them aside before laying out new ones. "Alright. Let's try this again!" Jade stepped into the circles of materials before turning around to see Karkat holding the toy again. "Ready..." Jade now hated the stupid toy with a passion. This process of 'get out before I set off the pistol' continued for two hours, leaving Jade exhausted, but she knew that the toy would be loud, so she kept trying. "Ready... Set..." Jade couldn't seem to get out, covering her ears as the click went off, unbelievably loud for a toy... or maybe it was just her sensitive hearing. She looked around, noticing she was still stood in the circles of materials.  
"It worked!" Jade stepped off to the side, leaning against the wall.  
"Are you alright?" Karkat looked over with concern.  
"I'm just need a break." Jade dozed off, slowly sliding to the floor.

"Where did you motherfucking come from?" Gamzee asked surprised, looking at Jade. Jade sighed, realizing she teleported and was currently sitting on a counter. "Here you go!" Gamzee handed Jade a cup of soda he poured from the bottle he had on the counter. Jade was about to drink it, but Karkat opened the door, taking the cup.  
"Don't drink it, it will make you stupid like this dumbass." Karkat motioned over to Gamzee.  
"Hey Karbro my motherfuckin' best bro!" Gamzee smiled.  
"Hey Gamzee. I came over here to get Jade." Karkat looked over to see Jade staring off to the side angrily. "Jade, what's wrong?"  
"I thought I had control of this teleporting thing, but I don't. I don't like randomly ending up in some other place!" Jade leaned against the fridge, accidently knocking over some bins. She looked around, noticing she was in a different room. "Arg!"  
Karkat walked into the room, flicking on the lights of the file storage room. "Jade, calm down."  
"Calm down? Just leave me!" Several papers went flying off the shelves, scattering across the floor, leaving both Karkat and Jade silent.  
"Did you just toss those papers?" Jade tried the same thing again, sending the papers to the edges of the room. "Let's head back, alright?"

Wires. If there was anything Jade hated more than the needles, it was the wires. Now knowing how to keep her contained, Karkat had modified the collar with a blocker so he just had to hit a button to leave her unable to use her powers. The blocker would have to be replaced often, but at least it would make sure she didn't teleport off in the middle of her sleep. The only downside Jade saw was that they could now contain her to hook up monitors and prick her with needles and she couldn't get out of it.  
Better yet, to keep her from pulling out the wires and stay still for needles, Jade had been strapped down to an examination table, laying there against the cold steel. Her ear flicked over towards the sounds of approaching footsteps before she turned her head, noticing Karkat with another syringe. "No!" Jade pulled at the restraints, tired and anxious.  
"This is the last one, then no more needles." Karkat wiped a part of her arm before Jade felt the pinch of the needle as he drew a small vial of red. "Alright... See you in the morning."  
"What?! Why?" Jade felt her heart sink.  
"Over night observation. It's so we can keep an eye on your vitals. It's out of concern for your health. See you tomorrow." Karkat flicked out the lights, leaving Jade to spend the night in her thoughts and anxieties.


	9. Breezing Through

Authors note: you know what? Early update. Happy Halloween!

John had gotten used to the wires and even the new blocker collar over the past few months. After hearing Jade's stories from when she didn't get to be with the others for three days, John realized he wasn't in as bad a situation as he thought. "John, are you ready?" Vriska asked in total sincerity, braced and ready.  
"I was born ready." John held his hands out to his sides.  
"Do the windy thing!" Vriska exclaimed. John closed his eyes as he focused, but instead of feeling the wind around him, he felt as if he disappeared into it. He struggled a moment, trying to realize what was going on, feeling the weightlessness loss it's grip. John opened his eyes, breath in ragged shaky bursts as he looked around at the cold, dark metal space around him.  
"What happened?" John whispered, pulling his knees close as he tried to figure out what happened.  
The collar sounded, staticky but understandable," Hello, John? Can you hear me?"  
"Yes. Who is this?" John asked.  
"Thith ith thollucth. Vrithka thaid you dithappeard, and judging from what I can tell, you're either in the wall or the air duct."  
"I'm pretty sure I'm in the air duct."  
"I'm thending in Gamzee to get you, alright John?"  
"Okay. Hey Sollux, what happened to me?" John's voice cracked, his eyes drifting to look at the metal under his feet.  
"I'm not thure. Vrithka didn't ecthplain, but I'll put her on to ecthplain what the thaw." There was just static for a moment, then a familiar voice sounded.  
"John? You there?"  
"Hi Vriska."  
"You had me worried! Although, you just reached a whole new level of windy thing."  
"W-what do you mean?!"  
"John... You turned into air. You literally were the windy thing. You must have materialized in the air ducts because of the air current in the building."  
"Am I going to disappear?!" John panicked, hugging his knees.  
"You're not going to disappear! I'll make sure of it, I promise."  
"Really?"  
"Yes really. John, would I lie to you?"  
"No." John turned his head, hearing Gamzee.  
The adult crawled forward, flashlight in hand. "Sup lil' bro. I'm going to get you outta here. Come on." Gamzee lead the way, John close behind as they crawled through the air ducts. Gamzee pushed a grate out of its place before climbing out, helping John out of the air duct. John realized they were back where he had started, Vriska jumping up from her seat and rushing over to check John.  
"How do you feel?" Vriska motioned to Gamzee to leave before returning her attention to John, concern on her face.  
"I feel weird." John looked around. Vriska lead him over to the examination table, picking him up then setting him down on it, hooking up the monitors and turning the blocker on before looking through several papers.  
"What are you doing?" John asked, curious.  
"Going over all your information to make sure you're alright. John I'm going to need you to sit still, okay?" Vriska wiped down part of John's arm before pulling out a syringe. John looked away, but he still felt it. "There you go! Your going to have to stay here awhile, okay John?"  
"Your leaving?!" John panicked.  
"Not yet, but in a few hours I will. So far I'm not spotting any dangerous changes..." Vriska compared her papers to the monitors. "I'll run a few more tests and you're going to have to stay in here overnight, but I think you'll be fine."

Vriska flicked on the lights, waking John up almost instantly. "Hi John." Vriska checked the monitors," Alright... You are definitely not going to disappear."  
John sat up, excited," Really?" He jumped up, smile on his face.  
"So, can you do it again?" Vriska asked. John focused, feeling weightless before retuning back to normal. "Hm. Do the windy thing!"  
John giggled before throwing his hands forward, a gust of wind racing across the room. An idea came to mind and John pulled his hands quickly back, wind whipping around his legs. His eyes went wide in surprise as the wind slowly lifted him off the ground.  
Vriska was stunned a moment. "How long have you been able to do that?"  
"I just thought of it now." John looked around. "Um, Vriska? I don't know how to get down without stopping the wind."  
"Okay, so?"  
"That means I'll fall." John looked down at the ground, feet below him.  
"You aren't going to fall. You have enough control that you should be fine." Vriska stepped closer anyway. The wind stopped all at once, but John seemed to float gently to the ground, completely surprised.  
"See? I told you you wouldn't fall."


	10. A Light in the Dark

"The 'adults' keep talking about some guy who's supposed to show up. Apparently he's creepy as hell." Dave took several bites of cereal," He's the project manager or some shit, so he wants to see the 'subjects'."  
"Dave, how would you know if this man is creepy or not? Through conversation with Terezi? I doubt he's quote 'creepy as hell'." Rose looked back to her book.  
"Vriska mentioned some creepy weird guy, too. Maybe he is creepy?" John suggested.  
"I still think you're all over reacting." Rose stated.  
The door opened, Kanaya stepping in. "Rose, time to go." Rose closed her book, following Kanaya down the hall.  
"Kanaya, can I ask you a question?" Rose asked.  
"Yes."  
"Who is the man coming to the facility?"  
"He's the project manager. He wanted to see how things have been going the past two years, so he came to pay a visit."  
"Do you think he's creepy?"  
"He's very strange, but no, he is not creepy. What made you think that?"  
"I just-" Rose felt a sharp pain in her head, stopping as she held her head. She could vaguely tell what Kanaya was saying, but she was more concerned with what she saw. Shadows and a strange man in white, holding something in his hands.  
"Rose, are you alright?" Kanaya's voice sounded, Rose loosening the grip on her head as she looked at Kanaya. Kanaya had crouched down, hands under Rose's arms to help keep her from falling over.  
"I'm alright Kanaya." Rose waited for Kanaya to let go before taking a step forward, falling onto Kanaya.  
"What was it?" Kanaya asked as she held Rose close, carrying her as she continuing down the hall.  
"It was dark except for a man in a white suit with white hair." Rose mumbled, hearing another set of footsteps.  
"Hello Kanaya. This subject is Rose Lalonde, correct?" A man's voice asked.  
"Yes."  
"Can I talk to her a moment?"  
Kanaya put down Rose. Rose looked up at the man. His hair was white, along with his suit, although his shirt under his jacket was brilliant green like his eyes. Rose recognized him as the strange man.  
"Hello Rose, my name is Doctor Scratch, but my colleges call me Doc. It's a pleasure to meet you." Doc Scatch stated, monotone.  
"Hello Doc Scratch." Rose replied, noticing Doc Scratch give a slight smile.  
"Kanaya, can I speak to her in private?" Doc Scratch asked.  
"Yes, we were going to enter this lab room," Kanaya motioned to the door a few feet away," so I will give you two a moment."  
Rose and Doc Scratch stepped into the room, the door clicking shut. "Hello Rose, how are you doing today?"  
Rose gave Doc cautious glance," I'm alright."  
"You seem to be the most cooperative. I want to ask why you act so different from the other three kids."  
"I think differently, that's all."  
"Is that so? Rose, I must leave in a moment, but I have something for you." Doc Scratch pulled out a white ball from his pocket, handing it to Rose," This is very special, so don't lose it, understood Rose?"  
Rose nodded. "What does it do?"  
"It will help you see the future." Doc Scratch replied as he stood up to leave," Take care Rose. I must be off." Doc Scratch left the room, Kanaya walking in instead to start the usual day.

Rose looked over the ball in her room, eyes scanning the surface. To her it looked like just a simple white ball, but maybe she wasn't looking at it right. It probably didn't help that her room was dark and she had no control over the lights. She focused on the ball, but suddenly she felt very strange. Her hands were surrounded in shadows that flickered like a flame, but she could partially see something on the ball.  
Rose stopped using the shadows immediately. She hadn't quiet gotten the hang of it and was unsure where this new ability could lead her into. She took a slow breath before making the shadows reappear, finding she could control them surprisingly well before testing how big and small she could make them. It was strange, and yet she felt like there was something else, focusing differently on the shadows. They danced, bright glowing white, lighting up her room, but when she tried testing her limits, it was much harder to make them grow. Rose stopped, hidding the ball under her bed before falling asleep.

"Rose, you have been very tired for the past few days. Is something the matter?" Kanaya asked Rose, concern on her face.  
"Nothing is wrong Kanaya," Rose thought a moment, knowing the predicament that would ensue if she explained her new abilities," it's just my ability keeping me up is all."  
"Oh, I guess that is understandable." Kanaya smiled," you should head off to bed to get some sleep then." Kanaya lead Rose to her room, flicking off the lights," Night Rose."  
"Good night Kanaya." Rose waited for the door to shut before playing with the shadows, watching them as time ticked by.

The one good thing about being in the facility was that the kids had a free day when it was someone's birthday. Today, as it just so happened was Rose' 10th birthday, although Dave's would be coming up soon also. The kids played games, sometimes getting one of the adults to play, which was usually Gamzee. It was very fun, but Rose started feeling sick, her sides hurt and the lights seemed too bright.  
"Rose? You okay?" Dave asked, keeping an eye on the adults.  
"I'm fine Dave, no need to worry." Rose stated.  
"I'm not falling for it Rose. Something's up and your hiding it."  
"If you knew something was up, then why ask?"  
"To see if you would actually say it, but I guess not." Dave dropped his voice," Rose, this could be serious. This place is more sterile than a hospital and the employees have to be healthy, no cough or anything, to come to work. If you aren't feeling good it's either food poisoning, which I doubt, or something went wrong and you need to tell someone. Sure, I hate every second here, but they do care."  
"I can't tell."  
"Why the hell not?"  
"I think it's linked to my ability."  
"You have a new ability?"  
"Yes, it appeared a few days ago, but I don't want to end up in the same situation Jade and John were in."  
"What's the ability?"  
"I make shadows appear from my hands. I can do light too, but it's not as strong and doesn't pose any see able threats."  
"What are you two talking about?" Aradia smiled at the two kids, having walked up while they were distracted.  
"Nothi-" Rose started coughing, quickly catching everyone's attention. Feferi and Kanaya came over, concerned. "I'm... fin-" Rose coughed, feeling something slimy drip through her hands.  
"Rose?!" Kanaya picked up Rose, quickly carrying her out, closely followed by Feferi.


	11. Frozen Times

How long had it been since he had been outside or seen even a glimpse of the sky? Since he'd seen new faces? Since he'd seen his brother? He felt like he had lost track of time, but ironically the date stood out in his mind, mocking his misery. It had been about four months and seven years since he had been outside or seen his brother in person. It had been about four months and five years since he had meet someone new and almost lost Rose to her own abilities and fear. It had been exactly twenty-five hours and thirty-six minutes since he had looked up Bro, John's dad, Rose's mom, and Jade's grandpa up on the Internet as Terezi ran tests on him. His hand drifted to his arm, still sore from the countless needles as he curled up on his bed.  
He stared at the wall of the darkened room. The only thing worse than having time powers, was developing new abilities. He cringed at the thought of someone finding out, especially after hearing what happened with the other kids. Sadly, he would be found out, whether it be in a matter of seconds or weeks, but how would they be able to tell? He thought back to yesterday, right before being forced back to his room, when he covered up his ability be traveling back, buying himself more time.  
"Dave, come on. We're doing mazes today!" Terezi lead the way down the hall as Dave followed. The mazes were the only real competition the kids had left, since there wasn't much else for them to compete with. Jade held the top spot ,for obvious reasons, at three seconds; John was second at twenty-seven seconds by just turning into the wind and drifting to the end. Dave and Rose would figure out the maze via foresight or time travel, but would have to run through, leaving Dave at third and Rose in fourth.  
Dave stepped into the little room right before the maze, waiting for the door to open. His collar crackled to life," Hi Dave! You ready?"  
"No, I'm just standing around for nothing."  
"Wow Dave. Remember, time starts once you step in, ends when you step out. I'll be waiting for you at the finish line!" The door to the maze opened and Dave walk in, taking his time as he figured out the maze before traveling back, sighing, knowing he would have to bolt through since his powers would take him to wherever he was at the time. "Wow Dave. Remember, time starts once you step in, ends when you step out. I'll be waiting for you at the finish line!"  
A thought dawned on Dave, and as he bolted into the maze the time on his watch stood still. He knew he couldn't keep this up for long, running through the maze as fast as he could. His breath came in ragged pants, energy quickly draining with each step, but time ticked again as he stepped on the finish line, falling to his knees exhausted. "Two point seven seconds." The mechanical voice stated, but everyone there stared at Dave, mouths agape in shock.  
Terezi rushed over to Dave, dropping to her knees in front of him before holding his shoulders," Dave, how long have you been able to do that?"  
"It... doesn't... matter." Dave panted, right as he blacked out.

Dave opened his eyes to blinding light, trying to cover his eyes with his hands only to find them firmly held in place. He opened his eyes again to see faces around him, quickly identifying them as Eridan, Feferi, and Terezi. "Dave, can you hear me?"  
"Why is it so fucking bright?" Dave grumbled, tugging at his restraints.  
"Your shades are over on my desk... they fell off when you blacked out." Feferi kept looking at his eyes, but now Dave realized why. His heart started pounding as he looked around, noticing the wires quite quickly. "Calm down, everything's go-"  
"Easy for you to say, seeing as how you aren't strapped to a table feeling exposed." Dave snapped.  
"We're trying to help you!" Terezi frowned.  
"How is any of this helping me?! I've been taken from my family, forced into a nightmarish lab, and told everything is for my own good. My ability isn't threatening my health, if anything it's you guys!" Everyone fell silent, Dave closing his eyes as he sighed. "Can I leave?"  
"... Look, Dave, it's our job to make sure your ability doesn't threaten your health. You blacked out as soon as you finished from over exertion and need to take it easy a few days, so you'll be in here." Feferi explained, quickly checking the monitors before looking back at his eyes.  
"Can I at least get my shades back?" Dave frowned, noticing Feferi's head shake no," Then can you all leave me alone and stop staring at my eyes?"  
"Sorry, their just so vivid..." Feferi looked away," but okay. I'm going to have to draw blood, then I'll leave you be."  
"Hell no."  
"Dave, calm down." Terezi stated as Dave listened to Feferi open things.  
"I've had enough with the needles." Dave froze as he felt something cool against his arm, then began tugging against the restraints. Eridan tightened the restraints on Dave's arm for Feferi, fear knotting Dave's stomach. No matter his powers, these people would find to leave him defenseless and left to do with him as they pleased, and that alone was what terrified him, and probably his friends as well. Little did the adults seem to care that the kids were being driven towards a breaking point.  
Besides, Dave thought, what are you supposed to feel when everything that makes you unique leads to being strapped to an examination table?


	12. Sudden Spike

Gamzee mixed the cake batter in the bowl, humming as he cooked. He turned to grab a pan, only to find a small girl in glasses holding a big leather book. "Woah, how'd you motherfucking get in here?"  
The girl smiled," Through the door. Oh, Gamzee, I have a surprise for you." The girl opened the book, Gamzee staring at the burn mark on the cover, shaped like a house, before the girl pulled out a small black bag. "Pour the powder in the cake and it will make it taste like the Faygo version of the cake flavor."  
"You serious?"  
The girl tugged the fold covering the red prohibited sign on her shirt before looking over at Gamzee, smiling sweetly," I'm totally serious. In fact, why not give each of your coworkers a slice as well so they can try it too?"  
"Alright, this is going to be so motherfucking miraculous!" Gamzee dumped the purple powder in the cake batter, the girl chuckling under her breath as she disappeared down the hall, unknowingly leaving her book on the counter.

The kids sat in the large group room alone; surprisingly Aradia was missing from the picture. Checking the door reveled that the someone had locked it, the kids sighing as they sat around the small table in the room. "This is bullshit." Dave mumbled, glaring at the door.  
"Dave!" John spun around to look at Dave.  
"It's true, don't even deny it Egbert. They treat us not like we're kids, but like we're animals; locking us in rooms and experimenting on us, with disregard to our own desires."  
"Your just saying that because they took your shades and monitored you for three days." Rose looked up from her book.  
"I second Dave's motion," Jade stated," cause I've been treated like I'm completely a dog. Remember when they started making me eat kibble for 'my dietary needs'?! I don't mind the snausages or the biscuits, but the rest is unnecessary! I can eat normal food as proved by you guys sneaking me human food. Or how about when they thought I would go through heat, so the treated my like I was a ticking time bomb? And you guys already know about the 'don't understand, let's strap them to a table in their undergarments for three days' stupidity they put us through following new abilities. Dave isn't overreacting because they took his shades unlike the time we all learned we could levitate, he's fucking spot on!" Jade shouted, voice cracking several times as she glared the table. "You of all people should understand this perfectly well, since you see right through to hidden motives. So, why are you cooperating in all their mistreatment and carelessness?"  
Everyone sat in silence a moment. "Because I knew we were going to escape the day Aradia didn't show, and I've known since the beginning." Rose smiled, standing up," We are leaving today, alive, walking away unstopped."  
At that moment the door clicked, flung open by a very familiar girl; Sam. "You got that right! Oh, and I got you guys a little something something." Sam tossed them the collar key, laughing at their surprised expressions.  
"But... How?!" John asked, Rose quickly unlocking his collar before unlocking herself and the others.  
"I borrowed some keys." Sam twirled the key ring nonchalantly.  
"I think he means how are you here, much less exactly the same as when we last saw you, Sam." Dave stated.  
"First, I'm an powerful being as old as time. Second, I can track anyone who uses my book, you know, the one with the house burnt in the cover and zodiacs around it, by eating the powder. And third, my name isn't actually Sam. So, hello, my name is Sburb. Lastly, you guys were no use to me as kids, so I decided to come back when you were teens." Sburb smiled deviously," And if I were you guys, I would get some clothes and get out of her while the all the workers are distracted, ciao!" Sburb stepped back, fading away.  
The kids spent no time waiting, grabbing the keys that Sburb left before running down the hall, stopping by the worker store room. Boxes with employee name labels sat on shelves, clothes visible. The kids went through, pulling on clothes that fit without regard to who's they were. Jade pulled on a light gray skirt, striped thigh-high socks, red flats, a black sweater with a white spiral on it, and a long gray two point hat that also covered her neck, cutting holes in the top for her ears. Dave put on all red, red workout suit and then a red gear t-shirt over it, red sneakers, and a red cloak he found amongst D&D books. Rose pulled on orange pants and dress with a yellow sun on it, red beanie and blue shoes. John cut a hole in a blue weather sock before putting it on as a hat, jeans some blue shirt with a what looked like a toothpaste shape on it, and yellow sneakers.  
The kids laughed when they were dressed, walking out of the facility and down the road together, worries left behind in the place they had spent so many years.  
"Hey, John?" Jade giggled.  
"What?" John asked.  
"Happy birthday!"

Karkat walked into the break room, finding inside everyone shoveling cake. Karkat noticed the cake on the table, a note from Gamzee saying it was special for them, grabbing one of the last slices and taking a bite. It tasted horrible, something he never expected of Gamzee's cooking, realizing everyone was finishing the slices to keep from hurting Gamzee's feelings. Karkat chocked down his slice, somehow finding it worse than his own cooking. Gamzee walked in, taking the last slice as he noticed everyone else finish their slices, quickly taking a bite. A look of confusion spread on his face, but he finished his slice. "That was motherfucking gross. Not faygo at all. That girl lied."  
Karkat's gaze snapped over to Gamzee. "What girl?"  
"Oh, some girl with a red circle shirt and this big leather book."  
"What did the book look like?"  
"It had a house shaped burn on it and zodiac symbols, and weird writing in it. Anyway, the girl pulled a bag full of powder out the back and said pour it in the cake."  
Karkat's heart dropped, the description sounding horribly familiar, reminding him of the kids' stories. From the silence around, Karkat could tell it sounded familiar to everyone too. "Show me the book now."


	13. Alternate Lines

Karkat looked at the huge leather-bound book before looking around the cluttered kitchen space. Karkat stepped forward, flipping over the cover of the book and looking at the strange writing. The alien letters seemed so familiar for some reason, so simple and inviting, dangling like steak infront of a starving wolf's nose. Karkat's eyes scanned the pages, reading story after story, detail to detail. "Karbro!" Gamzee pulled Karkat's attention from the book," Can you all up and read that fucker?"  
Karkat quickly snapped the book cover shut. "If you hadn't feed everyone the fucking powder this shit wouldn't happen. Now I can read Alternian!"  
Gamzee stared in confusion," Alternian?"  
Karkat froze, then sighed. "Great! I know the language name too!"  
"Are you going to be alright Karbro?" Gamzee grabbed the book, keeping it away from Karkat as he waited for Karkat to respond.  
Karkat's phone rang and he checked it. "Well isn't that great?! The kids escaped."

... The next day...  
The kids had found an abandon house on the edge of town, claiming it as a place to stay. Surprisingly, they had found blankets and though the outside was ravaged, the inside was unscathed. Jade had found cans of food when they got there, which would easily last a few days amongst the group.  
"We should find our parents. We did finally escape after all." Dave mentioned before continuing on his can of peas.  
"I found a mystery can! Let's see..." John pulled the Swiss Army knife he had found along the road, prying the can open. "Who cans mayo?!"  
"That's the third unlabeled mayo can. You lost can picking privileges." Dave held out his can to John before going to grab a can, coming back with an unlabeled can. He opened it, reveling meat chunks in gravy.  
"How many tries did it take?" John asked.  
"Four. I'm pulling out the mayo ones." Dave passed John the can before heading over to the can pile to pull out the mayo cans.  
John took a bite, noticing Jade snickering. "What?"  
"That's dog food." Jade giggled.  
John didn't get to hear what Jade said before the taste of the canned food hit, spitting out the meat chunk. "You had to eat this stuff for seven years?!"  
"It's not that bad." Jade laughed.  
"Oh really? Give me the can, Egbert." Dave took the can, eating a bite. He turned to Jade," You lied, this is gross."  
Rose and Jade laughed, almost knocking over the cans they were eating from. "You set the rules Strider; you start it, you finish it, unless it's a condiment." Rose smiled.  
John and Dave stared at the can, then grumbled as they tried eating it. "Maybe if I pour in the peas it won't be as bad?" Dave poured in some peas and the juice in it, taking a bite," Shit, it's worse." Dave frowned as John gagged.  
"What made you think sweet peas were a good idea?!" John coughed, Jade and Rose laughing harder.  
"Quick, grab the mayo, it's not like this can be any worse." Dave stated, John adding mayo to the mix before they both tried it again.  
"You were wrong!" John coughed. "Why did we do this?"  
"I don't know. I don't even like mayo."  
"Dave!"  
"Shut up and eat your dog food." Dave stated, he and John choking down the can as quickly as possible.  
"That was horrible!" John gagged.  
"Admit it, that was gourmet purina or some shit." Dave continued on his can of peas.  
Jade smiled before holding her pear can out to John," Here, since you don't seem to be having luck with the cans."  
"Thanks." John finished off the can. "I wonder what the adults are up to?"

Slick glared at Karkat and Gamzee, not very eager to see them. "What did you get into this time?" Slick growled.  
"I fucked up big time." Karkat stated.  
"Obviously." Slick snorted," Be more specific."  
"Me and eleven others accidently got powers thanks to this dumbass," Karkat motioned to Gamzee," and I went into the project managers' office to go over files only to find out he had been planning vivisections," Karkat felt a chill run up his spine," it became obvious that we should run. He had planned that for kids, fucking kids!"  
Slick held up a hand," Alright, alright, you can stay. Now do you realize why I didn't want you workin' for Feds? They're screwed up."  
"So, can we stay with you?" Karkat asked.  
"Did you tell anyone I'm in part of the mob?" Slick asked.  
"Nope."  
"Alright, you can stay, but you're in the back with your tall friend. I don't need someone spotting you and investigating."  
Karkat sighed in relief," You're the best stepdad ever."  
"Yeah, yeah." Slick grumbled, walking off.  
Gamzee's phone vibrated, Gamzee checking it," Hey Karbro, everyone found motherfuckin' safe places. It's a miracle!"  
"That's a relief."

Doc Scratch looked over his desk, papers obviously moved and several missing. He called the project founder, waiting for him to pick up his phone. "Hello?"  
"Hello Mr. Hussie, can you send me a few papers? They seemed to have gone missing." Scratch looked over his papers again.  
"From which status report?" Hussie asked.  
"Information report 413R2JD and 612TR02LS. I need them for my next report." Doc tapped on his desk.  
"Alright. So, since you don't ever explain the experiments, can you at least promise you aren't doing anything stupid."  
"Promise."  
"I sent the files to your fax. I have to leave soon, so by Doc." The phone clicked off, Doc Scratch hanging up the call piece before going over his files. The phone rang, Doc Scratch quickly picking up," Hello."  
The deep, gravely voice at the other end sound angry, like usual," Did you get the information yet Scratch?"  
"Of course. In fact, we have enough to start testing of our own. Better yet, the original subjects are loose in the city for you to catch, clearing up some earlier flaws in the plan."  
"Very good Scratch. I had my doubts, but you have pulled through. I have had a lab set up like you requested and you can use the Felt members to assist you. If you fail I'll kill you myself, is that clear?"  
"That's assuming I'll fail, which is simply impossible. I haven't failed you yet have I?"  
"It better stay that way if you desire to keep breathing!"  
"Understood. Good bye Lord English." Doc Scratch hung up the phone before setting out with his stack of files.


	14. Ending Ties

The kids set off into the town. "We all meet up later at the abandoned house no matter what, okay?" John smiled, the others nodding. "Bye guys!" John watched as they went their separate ways, going to find their parents.  
John hummed happily under his breath as he skipped through town, excited to be on his way to see his dad. He felt the wind on his skin, deciding to fade into it, appearing in front of his house on the sidewalk. He could barely contain his happiness as he went up to the door and knocked. Dad opened the door," Hello?"  
"Dad!" John hugged his dad, now close to his height.  
"I'm sorry, but you must be confused. My son disappeared over seven years ago." Dad replied sadly.  
John stepped back. "Dad, it's me, John. Don't you remember me?" John looked at his dad's face, hoping for any recognition.  
"I'm sorry, but I think your mistaken. I was told John died years ago, the doctors said so." Dad shook his head," Come in, I'll help you find your parents. Maybe your so stressed you think your my son?"  
John followed Dad in sadly," But I'm not dead, dad." John whispered, on the verge of tears. Dad lead him to the kitchen," Here we are," dad pulled a phone book from on top of the fridge. "Go through it. Who knows, maybe you'll remember your name." Dad smiled before heading out of the room. John sighed, looking up and noticing a little girl standing on a stool in front of the counter, mixing something.  
"Hello." John waved from his spot against the wall.  
The little girl put down the spoon, hopping down from the counter and walking over. "Are you a super hero?"  
John smiled," Yup!"  
"What's your power?" The girl asked. John let the wind pick up around him, then quickly die down. "Woah!" The girl looked around in shook," Oh, what's your name?"  
"I'm John, John Egbert. What's your name?"  
"Jane, Jane Crocker like my mommy, but dad's name is just like yours!" Jane said, thinking a moment.  
"That's because he's your dad, but he's my dad too."  
"So, your my brother?"  
"Yeah!"  
"How come dad didn't tell me about you?"  
"He thought I was gone. It has been seven years."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, I'm 15 as of yesterday."  
"I'm five and a half."  
"Wow, your so old."  
"No, your old!" Jane giggled. At that moment Dad stepped in. "Dad, he made the wind go everywhere!" Jane spun to emphasize her point. Dad froze, looking over to John. "Show him John, show him!"  
To dad's surprise, the wind picked up, Dad freezing in place. "You're really John!" Dad hugged him, on the verge of tears. The breaking of glass sounded, then everything went black.

Rose walked down the street, heading to where she knew the house was. As she approached the door, she spotted a little blonde girl waving bye to a boy with black hair, then walking up to the house. The girl noticed her near the door and ran over," Miss! Why do ya look like a wizyard? I mean wizard."  
Rose gaze the girl a confused look. "Are you alright?" The girl nodded. "Alright, I look like a wizard because I am."  
The girl's pink eyes went wide," For realz? I'm Roxy miss wizard!" Roxy held out a hand to Rose, smile wide.  
Rose chuckled," Why hello Roxy, my name is Rose. I'm on my way to 1207 Lar street."  
Roxy looked surprised," I live on onety-two seven Lar Strewt!"  
"Oh, then can I come in?"  
"Course! Your a wiz'rd!" Roxy took Rose's hand leading her into the house. "Mom, I'm home! And I found a wizard!" The woman on the counter was definitely Rose's mom, currently having on of her legendary hangovers.  
"Really? That's great sweetheart, but please be quieter, mommy has a headache."  
"Mom, it's me Rose. I'm back from the pits of hell."  
"Roxy, why do you sound so mature?"  
"Because I'm your daughter Rose, Roxy is being quiet."  
"Who?"  
Rose sighed. "I'll be back later, alright Roxy?"  
"Okay miss wizard, I mean Rose. But, do you really have to go?"  
"I'll be back with sweets, okay?"  
"Yay!" Roxy cheered as Rose left, walking back to the house.

Dave stepped into the elevator, moments later he heard someone run up, getting in. Dave looked up, a slight smile on his face when he realized it was Bro... and a kid? "Hey." Dave smirked.  
Bro looked over," You on your way to a club or something?"  
Dave looked down at his clothes, mentally smacking himself on the head," No, I don't think anyone could handle all this. You seriously don't remember me, Bro?"  
Bro thought a second," Are you the puppet model kid?"  
"Bro, no. Smuppets are weird as fuck."  
"I didn't say anything about smuppets. And only a few people call me Bro."  
"I've always called you Bro."  
"Only one way to know who you are." Bro pulled out a katana from who knows where. Dave kicked a panel of the elevator open, pulling out the katana he hid there as a kid. The two battled head on in the elevator, the little boy sitting in the corner with Cal. As the elevator reached the last floor, they held the swords to each other's throats, that is until Bro kicked Dave, knocking him over. "Your alive after all. Still forget to block?"  
Dave got up," It was hard to practice on my own without a sword." Dave readjusted his shades.  
"Knew you would escape. This is Dirk, he's your little brother." Bro patted Dirk on the head, Dirk looked over at Dave.  
"Why do you look like a nerd?" Dirk asked.  
"I know you wished you could be this cool, with ninja skills and some shit. I'm Dave." Dave watched Dirk mess with his Kamina shades. A crash sounded, along with heavy footsteps down the hall. The Striders looked down the hall, noticing a guy built like a bear pounding on their door along with some other guy.  
"Take Dirk someplace else." Bro told Dave.  
"Bro, I want to stay with you." Dave frowned.  
"If you haven't noticed, these guys have machine guns." Bro noticed someone behind Dirk, slashing at the stranger when they held something over his face. Dave pulled Dirk away as Bro took the guy out. Footsteps sounded down the hall. "Get him out of here. I'll meet up with you guys at the diner, alright?"  
Dave picked up Dirk, then paused time. He knocked the guns out of their hands as he went past, then hurried down the stairs. As soon as he made down the block, time ticked again and he headed back to the abandoned house.

Jade actually walked to her house, finding it enjoyable to walk through town and up the dirt road to her house. She noticed a little boy headed for the house. "Hello there!" She smiled at the boy, he turned around.  
"Why hello, miss!" The boy quickly noticed the ears," Are those real?"  
Jade flicked her ears up and down in demonstration," Yup!"  
"Oh, where are my manners! I'm Jake, Jake English." He held out his hand.  
"Jade, Jade Harley. So, what brings you out here Jake?"  
"My grandmother died last year, so grandpa took me in."  
"What a coincidence, I was off to see my grandpa. He's the only house up this road."  
"Mine too. Maybe we're related?" The conversation continued on as they walked up the long dirt road. They stopped, noticing several cars around the house and the echo of gunshots.  
"Grandpa!" They both yelled, running up to the house. As soon as Jake stepped into the house a hand clamped a rag over his face. Jade tackled the strange man, knocking him out and pulling Jake from his arms. Jade carried Jake, looking through the trashed house for their grandpa. As they approached, a gun fired and the old man's knees buckled. Several strange men stepped towards them.  
"Sorry grandpa." Jade teleported off with Jake in her arms, off to somewhere safe.


	15. Dinner and Reveal

Dave, Rose and Jade watched over Dirk and Jake as they slept of the weird things that had occurred. "Where's John?" Dave asked quietly.  
Rose looked up from the floor," Unfortunately, the attacks today seemed to have been planned. John and the other two little kids have been captured. They had tried catching Dirk earlier, but your brother fought them off and you saved him the second time."  
"We need to go to the Midnight Crew Diner. Bro said he would meet me there." Dave stated, looking at his watch.  
"Dave, all our guardians are dead, but I guess we can go to the diner." Rose pulled a wallet out of the pocket of the pants she was wearing.  
"Where did you get a wallet?" Jade asked.  
Rose flipped the wallet open, showing Equius' ID card," I took his strange karate pants, and they had pockets, so upon checking I found it." She opened the wallet," He's got... Sixty-three dollars in bills."  
"Isn't that stealing?" Jade asked.  
"We can't get jobs and are on our own. But if you feel bad about it," Dave pulled out Eridan's wallet," we could use this one. He's got seventy-one in bills and he was a jerk."  
"He left his wallet in his sweatpants?" Jade questioned.  
"Yes. The guy was a jerk." Dave's attention turned to Dirk and Jake as they woke up, Jake staying on the ground while Dirk sat up.  
"Where are we?" Dirk asked, looking around.  
"We're at a secret hideout, but we're leaving soon to go to the diner." Dave tucked the wallet back in his pocket.  
"Will Bro be there?"  
"I hope so."  
"I think I can take us to the diner." Jade hopped up, suddenly they were all standing in the park, only a block from the park. "Let's get walking!"  
They walked to the diner, seeing Deuce at the front. "Hi! Wow, I haven't seen you guys in forever! Oh, follow me, there's plenty of open tables." Deuce lead them over to a table. There was only one other person in this area of the diner and they were leaving. Deuce set down the menus, collecting drink orders before leaving them.  
"Bro said he would meet us here," Dave noticed Dirk and Jake coloring all over the kids menus," hey, circle what you want first."  
"Can we get anything?" Jake asked excited.  
"Sure, but if you want ice cream order dinner shit first." Dave watched Jake's face light up as he circled ice cream and chicken nuggets, Dirk circling the same.  
"I'm getting ice cream, too!" Jade smiled.  
"You know the rule Harley, get dinner food too."  
The kids laughed, but Jade froze before looking over her shoulder. The bust boy was grabbing dishes as he wiped down the tables. "Karkat?" Jade asked, surprised. Karkat looked up from the table, completely caught off guard.

John opened his eyes, quickly sitting up as he looked around him. The room around him had several tables and a few cabinets and shelves, shuddering at the sight of the examination table in the corner. He looked down, realizing he was in a huge glass cylinder, fan below the metal grate under him and panels and switches around the cylinders' base, which was raised above the surrounding floor. Panic started kicking in as John felt the edges for a way out, turning into wind a moment only to realize he was trapped in. The door clicked, John pushing himself away from the door.  
"Why, hello John. How nice to see you again." Doc Scratch smiled, John's eyes shifting between the other two people first. "I see you seem quite nervous, but there are several tests we need to run." John scooted further into the center, trying to avoid the sharp gazes of the scientists as they circled around. "Any questions?"  
"Can I see my dad and Jane?" John asked voice cracking.  
"Sorry, but your father is dead and Jane is also in testing. You're probably going to ask 'can I go home?' which I must say no." John's heart sunk, warm tears trickling down his cheeks. "Don't feel so bad, you made it through alive at least, but then again, killing any of you kids is nearly impossible. These two," Doc pointed to the other two in lab coats," you will call Dr. B," he motioned to the tall albino man," and Dr. G." He motioned to the short blond woman. "They are my assistants."  
"I want to leave! I want Jane and anyone else trapped here to leave!" John cried, moving away from them, feeling cold metal under his bare feet and the rough medical clothes he wore. "My entire childhood was spent in a lab, getting stabbed with pins and needles, forced through tests! What more do you want from me?!"  
Doc Scratch got close to the cylinder's edge," You have no idea how long I've waited for this opportunity. I had to hold back on the more invasive tests out of fear of losing any of you children, but new tests have proved my caution unnecessary." John's eyes went wide," Lets start with the easier ones before stepping into the others, shall we?" Doc Scratch smirked," Care to make yourself more visible?"  
"L-leave me alone!" John felt his feet burn, wind wiping up involuntarily and lifting him into the air, panic setting in as John frantically tried to stay down while not getting burned by the metal grate, but still he was too visible for comfort.  
"If you can't even get past this you will be in for rough times ahead." Doc smiled.


	16. Dogs,Swords,a Rose and Life in a Breeze

Karkat just stared at the kids in disbelief. "You kids need to get out of here. Leave, run as far as you can!"  
"Why? We need to find John and the other two kids." Jade asked.  
"If Scratch finds you it's over. He planned things for you guys, horrible things; it's part the reason we didn't go after you guys! We honestly were trying to help, only to find out that wasn't the plan at all!"  
"What do you mean that wasn't the plan?" Dave questioned, arm in front of Dirk and Jake.  
"I mean Scratch was trying to turn you into weapons and find what makes you tick! Believe it or not, all of you had strange vitals, even some physical differences from regular people. All the research showed things that would make you significantly harder to kill and of course Scratch's first thought is to... try something more invasive. He probably has another plan up his fucking sleeves like some psychotic magician, which probably explains the two missing kids."  
"I got your dr- what's going on?" Deuce stopped, looking back and forth between the group in confusion.  
"It's fine Deuce. Remember what I said about my last job?"  
"So that's why I haven't seen them for a while! Hold on, I'll get Slick." Deuce left their drinks on the table before rushing off, quickly coming back with Slick.  
"I can't even let you clean a few measly tables before you get noticed," Slick noticed the kids," you guys? No wonder he got spotted."  
"Why is it a problem?" Dirk asked.  
"Cause the Feds after him since he left his job, that's why little squirt." Slick growled," Of course they're after all of you, too. Especially you three teens."  
"We won't let Scratch get us." Jade stated.  
"Did you say Scratch? Like Doc Scratch?"  
"Yeah, why?"  
"The Felt are the Feds after you?! What idiot hired him? That's it, all you kids are staying here till we find your stupid friends. Hell, we might find the Felt hideout."

...few days...  
John woke up, dizzy and nauseous. He tried sitting up, only to realize his arms and legs were strapped down, cool metal against his arms and back. He hadn't had a moments peace since he had gotten here, and he worried what they were doing to Jane. The door opened and footsteps approached, fear settling around him as he realized he couldn't get out of his restraints. "What's the matter? Restraints to tight?" Scratch questioned mockingly," Don't worry, we will knock you out first."  
"Let me go! This isn't fair!" John tugged at the restraints.  
"Oh? You have powers, how is that fair?"  
"If I had known this would happen I would have burnt the stupid book! I was a kid, I didn't think it would put me and my friends through hell!" John growled," What about Jane? She doesn't have any powers and you kidnapped her! Or my dad who you murdered?! How was that fair for them!? You aren't going by 'fair' your going by what your sick, twisted mind wants to do, so just let me and Jane go!"  
Scratch smirked," Believe it or not, I'm not in charge here. I'm just following orders. Dr. G, will you do the honors?" John tried pulling back as a something was held over his face, slowly slipping into restless sleep.

Jane sat up, forcing herself into a corner as she heard the door click open. "Come on runt, we've got testing." The big man sighed.  
Jane punched the man straight in the jaw as soon as he was close enough, a kick to her ribs in exchange. She fought back until he landed a sharp kick to her throat and everything went black.  
She looked around at the clouds around her, golden horizon in the distance against the blue sky. She realized she was floating, staring into the clouds as things unfolded, like a movie. She felt heavy, and as she sunk everything once again went black.  
"She's breathin'?!" A deeper voice exclaimed in shock. Jane opened her eyes, feeling like nothing happened. The new man who appeared crouched down," I'm not here to hurt ya', so just hold still." He picked her up, looking over her. Jane looked down, quickly seeing the blood spilt down the front of her white gown.  
"Bl-lood?" Jane whispered.  
"Shhhhh. It's alright. I'm going to take you to see Doc, make sure you're okay." The man held Jane close before leaving the room and walking down the hall. He walked into the room Jane had seen several times before, already trying to pull away. "Hey, 's okay. Calm down, I ain't tryin' to hurt ya'." The man turned his head to the footsteps in the hall.  
"What are you doing, Stitch?" A short man asked.  
"Eggs beat the girl to death, but she came back to life a moment later. I want Doc to make sure she's alright." Stitch stated. Jane froze in shock, then buried her head in Stitch's shoulder. "Hey, it's alright. Eggs wasn't 'posed to do that. Some help, Clover?"  
"You should look after the girl." Clover smiled," Doc's busy at the moment, but I could try to get one of his assistants."  
"Do that. I'll stay here." Stitch watched Clover walk off, then gently put Jane down on the table on the far wall.  
Jane stared down at her feet. "I... died?"  
"Yeah, but your alive now... Somehow." Jane felt something warm on her face, wiping it away to realize she was crying. "Hey, don't cry. You're alright now."  
The door opened to the clicking of heels across the floor. Jade looked up to see a blond woman who reminded her of a cat. "Hello there, Jane." The woman kneeled down," Are you alright? Does anything hurt?"  
"No miss."  
"Call me Dr. G, okay?"  
"G cat." Jane smiled.  
"I didn't quite get your name, your Jane...?"  
"Jane Crocker." Jane replied, Gcat giving her a sad look. "What's wrong Gcat?"  
"Nothing." Gcat held a the cold stethoscope to Jane's chest. Jane knew something was up, but what?

John woke up, feeling almost completely numb. Almost. He looked around, realizing he was back in the stupid cylinder, on his side. The medical clothes did nothing to comfort him from the metal grate, and numbness was slowly replaced by pain. John curled up in a tight ball, trying to get the pain in his chest to stop, but his actions did little to stop the pain. Actually, they seemed to be making it worse.  
John grit his teeth as he sat up, nauseous and dizzy as he looked around the room. What had they done while he was unconscious? An idea came to mind as he slowly lifted his shirt, eyes widening as his gaze fell on the stitches down his front. He quickly shoved the shirt down before leaning on the enclosed walls for support and eyed the door. Were his friends okay?

"Stop throwing blocks, stupid brat!" The angry man in the doorway kept swing his crowbar at the blocks that came his way. As soon as she knew how, Roxy had stockpiled blocks, and even pumpkins, in her cell. Right now she was pelting the man with her magic supplies she pulled from thin air, a pumpkin hitting the man in the head.  
"Bullseye!" Roxy giggled, before continuing her work at prying open the air vent. The corner of the cube finally unscrewed the last screw, and she climbed in, putting the grate back on before crawling on. "Hold on Janey, I'm coming!" Roxy crawled army man style down the metal tunnels, humming the theme song of the one guy with the bull whip as she tried to find her way to Jane. Making all those cubes and pumpkins was so draining, maybe Jane could hold on just a bit longer.


	17. Void of Safety

"Jake... Jake!" Dirk whispered, shaking Jake lightly. Jake opened his eyes sleepily. "Jake, let's go to the park." Jake looked around them, making sure everyone was still asleep before slipping on his shoes and jacket, following Dirk out the back door of the diner. They walked the block to the park, the street lamps their only form of light in the early morning. "You remembered your pistols?"  
Jake pulled them from their holsters strapped to his calves, quickly placing them back," You have your katana?"  
Dirk gave a smirk, pulling his katana slightly from the case before returning it," Of course. No getting caught today." The park slowly came into view, Dirk checking the surrounding area before motioning to Jake that the coast was clear. They continued through the park, making their way to the playground. One more check to confirm the park was empty, then they nodded to each other.  
"I call green swing!" Jake laughed racing off to the swings, only to have Dirk beat him there.  
"First come, first seat." Dirk smiled.  
"Then I'm taking orange." Jake hopped in the orange swing, already starting to swing.  
"No, I get orange."  
"To late! I'm swinging higher than you!" Jake swung higher, Dirk catching up. "I'm still higher, like a bird!"  
"No, I am." Dirk stopped, turning his head to the side. "Jake, get down." His gaze locked on Jake," Get down, now." Dirk jumped off his swing, quickly stopping Jake's and picking up his katana. Jake heard the noise too, pulling out his pistols.  
"Who's there?" Jake asked. Footsteps sounded behind him, and he turned to a tall figure, shooting at the figure's ankles.  
"Run!" Jake yelled, Dirk running with him through the dark park. A gruff man with a crowbar jumped out in front of them, Jake's shot clipped the man's shoulder before Dirk tossed Jake over his shoulder, continuing to run as Jake shot at the attackers. "I think I got all of them." Jake stated, Dirk putting him down before they both continued running. A short man stepped out in front of them. Jake lifted his pistols, but they jammed.  
"I'm so lucky your guns jammed!" Laughed the short man.  
Jade landed on top of the short man, knocking him out. "Good thing I was following you two!" Jade gripping her rifle tightly," Dirk, you're going to have to use your katana, the guns are jammed. Something's up with the park, so I can't teleport us out." Dirk nodded, taking the lead while Jade held up the rear, running around to try and find the entrance to the park.  
"Why are the fences so tall?!" Jake complained as they ran into yet another blocked exit. Shots fired from not far away, and once again they ran back towards the middle of the park. A tall man jumped out, but then a trashcan went flying at his head.  
Dirk and Jake stood, confused. "That was me, keep going!" Jade started pushing them forward, stopping as a crowbar hit her hard in the back of the head, knocking her out. Dirk turned just as the man lifted Jake by his shirt.  
"Leave him alone!" Dirk tossed his hands forward, sparks flying as the man seemed to be pulled closer, yet stay in the same place. He dropped Jake, screaming his lungs hoarse as the to versions of him were pulled slowly apart. Jake was grabbed by another one of the men as the other version of the man Dirk attacked disintegrated, the other collapsing to the ground. A man grabbed Dirk, forcing something sweet over his face, the world fading to black.

Roxy awoke, hearing a familiar voice rumble down the metal ducts. "Dirky? Jakey?" Roxy whispered, crawling towards the nearest vent and looking out to the ground below. It was a room, lights of except for a few small lights. Roxy pushed on the vent tumbling into a box of scrubs as the vent slid open. She sat up, looking around she notices an older boy in a glass tube thing in the middle of the room. "Callie- op!" She jumped out of the box, walking over to the sad boy. "Why are you sad?"  
The boy looked over surprise on his face. "I'm trapped and these people are hurting others."  
"I knews they were bad guys. Oh, I'm Roxy, who are you?"  
"Nice to meet you Roxy, my name is John."  
"Well John, I'm a bust you out! Which button though...hmm..." Roxy looked over the handful of buttons.  
"Don't hit any blue or red ones, those are bad!" John shouted quickly right as Roxy was about to hit a red button. "That leaves four buttons. Don't hit the top green one either."  
"Alrighty." Roxy hit the second from the top. A huge fan in the base roared to life, tossing the boy in the air. Roxy hit it again and it turned off," Sorry 'bout that. It's probably the bottom one, that seems right." There was a fizzing sound, so Roxy hit the button again, then the last green one. The cylinder lifted up, John quickly getting out.  
"Thank you!" John pulled Roxy into a hug.  
"I got to go find Janey, but you should escape."  
"You know where Jane is? Maybe I can help you."  
"What's your power?" Roxy was quickly answered by a gust of wind picking her up, then gently putting her down. "Woah! Let's go! I've been climbing through air ducts so I won't get caught."  
"That sounds like a plan!" John helped Roxy into the air duct, putting the vent cover in place before disappearing then reappearing in the air duct.  
"That's cool. Next stop, Janey!" Roxy lead the way, army crawling on.

"Listen kid, my bud's dead 'cause of you. How'd you do it?!" The angry man glared at Dirk, who had just woken up, shades missing in action.  
"You hurt my friends. We're even." Dirk switched into poker face mode. He had to find a way out, but as soon as he had woken up he was strapped to this table.  
"Listen stupid runt, tell me how you did it or I'll rip 'ya to shreds!"  
"I doubt shreds will give you an answer either."  
"I've made stronger squeal, and don't think I'm above hurtin' a kid."  
"Obviously." Dirk watched as the man's face went bright red.  
"That's it, you asked for it kid. No more mister nice guy!"

Jake gritted his teeth as he felt another electric shock. "It ain't workin'. I don't think the kid has any powers." The man grumbled to the other.  
"Well, what if we try more force?"  
As the men talked, Jake pleaded for it to end. There had to be hope for escape, no, he would escape. Suddenly he noticed the key for the cuffs on his arms in place, quickly twisting it and tossing the cuffs to the ground. Of course that grabs the two men's attention. "How'd 'ya do that?"  
"You left the key in?" Jake whispered.  
"No we didn't!" The man lifted his key ring. Jake looked to the cuffs to see the key gone. "The kid has powers after all."  
"Go away!" Jake hoped he could just fly away. Two glowing wrings appeared on his back, much to his surprise. The men dove at him, but he quickly jumped, wings carrying him to the ground were they had been. He tried opening the handle only to get pulled back by his wings, losing hope of escape. As he did, his wings disappeared. The men's menacing grins left him only able to feel despair.


	18. Dark on Glowing Feathers

"I don't know... It just happened!" Jake cried, struggling to pull free of the restraints. The two men glared at him; it didn't help that he was in his underwear.  
"You better figure out then!" The taller man growled. Jake tried thinking back, trying to remember what happened. The other man seemed to get impatient. "Maybe it's feelin' related, like when the other kids started out?"  
"Then we would have to scare the twerp or somethin'." The men's voices grew distant as Jake tried figuring out what it was. He had believed he would escape so much... that's it! Jake tried believing his wings would appear, hoping the men would untie him soon. The glowing wings formed on his back, pushing him forward a little.  
The men's attention was drawn by the ruffle off feathers and they quickly turned their gazes to Jake's wings. Nervousness started creeping in, but Jake kept focusing on staying hopeful. "So, can you let me down now... please?"  
"How'd 'ya do it?!" The stock man exclaimed.  
"Hope? ...Maybe?"  
"Like some weird guardian?"  
"I don't know!"  
"In that case, let's have Doc investigate." The tall man smirked, stocky man leaving to get Doc Scratch. Jake pulled the wings in around him, needing something between him and the men. Fear tore at him, eyes wide as he pulled on the straps. He had heard the name Doc enough at the diner alone to know this had taken a wrong turn.  
The door slammed open, Dirk stomping in before letting the door close behind him. His hands lifted up, broken restraint cuff still dangling from one wrist," Get away from Jake."  
"Dirk!" Jake smiled, then remembered his ability," Please be the real Dirk."  
The man backed away, Dirk doing the weird version-zap thing before turning to Jake. "Um, Jake?"  
"Yes Dirk?"  
"Why are you in your underwear?"  
"Huh?" Jake looked down, quickly looking back up as his face turned red. "Can you undo the restraints? I'll explain later." Dirk undid the restraints and Jake hugged him," You're alright!"  
"The guy lost his patience and broke the cuff," Dirk started searching through the cabinet along with Jake," I think you can guess what happened after that."  
"That's cool Dirk! They had me in a chair, but then I saw a key in the cuffs and I made these wings appear and I almost got away, but they pulled me back by the feathers and then I was stuck on a table and then you came in."  
"So, you can just call up a pair of wings?" Dirk kept looking for something besides a medical gown for Jake.  
"Yeah! But they are only around if I stay hopeful."  
"How do you make them go away?"  
Jake thought a moment," By not being hopeful? I don't have that much control, they just appear if I feel hope."  
Dirk pulled out a medical gown," This is all they have in here," he went behind Jake and tied it on," I think these are just cheap extras, but it's better than underwear. Let's find the others."  
"What about the people walking the building?"  
"I know we can take them." Dirk held the door open for Jake as they set off.

Terezi kept trying to see as Vriska shot at the attackers from behind the car. "Hurry up! Try harder!"  
"You try hard! Do your mind control thing!" Terezi growled between gritted teeth.  
"It's exhausting, besides I used it too much today!"  
"You shouldn't have used it on Tavros then!" Terezi shouted above the gunshots. "Who even sent these guys anyway?!"  
"I don't know! Where the fuck is Kanaya?!" Vriska pulled back into the shipping container as a bullet zipped by her ear.  
The rev of a chainsaw caught their attention as they looked out to see a red and black blur race by. Blood sprayed as a few grunts fell in two. "I think my chainsaw is getting dull." Kanaya stated, straitening out her skirt.  
"Wow Kanaya, I can smell the red." Terezi laughed before being pulled into a spiral of images," ARRRG! Why does this have to hurt?!"  
"I apologize Terezi, but the information is vital. Please bare through." Kanaya set down the chainsaw before trying to comfort Terezi.  
Vriska's phone rang,"Hello?"  
"Um, Vriska, Sollux and Eridan are fighting again. Feferi is trying to split it up, but I think we need help."  
"I can't keep splitting up fights!" Vriska looked out from the box, checking for anymore grunts," Tell them I need to talk to Sollux."  
"But-"  
"Just do it Tavros!"  
There was silence a moment,"Hello? You thaid you need me?"  
"Stop dulling Eridan and get over here! I'm having problems keeping an eye on Aradia."  
"What about the team numberth?"  
"Your switching with Equius."  
"Tho I'm with you, Kanaya, TZ, and AA?"  
"That's right, now get your ass over here! See you in five." Vriska hung up," Great, now we have two future seeing weirdos!"  
"Who you calling a weirdo, weirdo?" Terezi smirked as she tried drawing out what she had seen. "Oh, you just told Sollux to come over here, didn't you?"  
"Why?"  
"His group is going to fall apart. Guns and explosions and red everywhere." Terezi hummed.  
"Again?"  
"Yup, just like Nepeta and Equius. When are you going to tell them?"  
"They don't need to know." Vriska whispered, cringing at the memory two hands, fingers intertwined.  
"We should go get them, maybe we'll save them this time?" Terezi stood up, weapon in hand. The group raced to their friends pleading they weren't to late. Aradia jumped container to container, tossing back any grunts or goon they crossed to their death. They fought almost every step of the way, clearing in the crates almost in sight. As they approached they saw a hand toss something as if in slow motion, watching in horror as shrapnel tore into their friends. Several guns were unloaded on the figure, his crazed grin the last they saw as the figure fell to the ground.  
Feferi had taken most of the hit, but Eridan had also taken a fatal hit. Tavros lay closest to them,curled up on his side. "Tavros! Tavros!" Vriska raced to his side, followed by Kanaya as Terezi and Aradia covered the remaining attackers. "Tavros, answer me dammit!" Vriska growled in anguish.  
Blood dripped out the side of Tavros' mouth," Vriska... I can't... move."  
"We just need to get you help, right Kanaya?" Vriska looked over as Kanaya shook her head sadly. "Come on, you were a doctor! There has to be something!"  
"By medical means or special abilities, no. Only Feferi would have been able to help him, and she is currently unable to do so."  
"She can heal herself right? Right? Come on, say something!"  
"Vriska... Where...s...every...one?" Tavros coughed,"Just leave me here. You still...have to... get to Karkat... and... Gam...zee."  
"I'm not just leaving you to die in some shipping yard!" Vriska growled," You have to come with us. Buck up! Come on, let's go!"  
"I... I can't move... Vriska." Tavros coughed up blood," Now you don't have to switch out teammates... Take Equius with... so he can stay with... Nepeta and you have Aradia... And Sollux and Kanaya... And Terezi... So just go..."  
"NOOO! You have to come with us!" Vriska tried picking up Tavros as Kanaya pulled her away," NO! TAVROS! FEFERI! COME ON, EVEN YOU ERIDAN! GET UP!" Vriska screamed as Kanaya tossed her over her shoulder and hurried off. "Stop it Kanaya!"  
"They're my friends too, Vriska! We have to leave before the attackers get us." Kanaya's voice cracked, pulling Vriska's attention. They rushed on. Why had they tried to lose the cars following them in this shipping yard? It had set them up to lose so many, but they couldn't stop now unless they wanted to join them.


	19. grrrRR Bark!

They had literally put her in a dog crate. With kibble. And a water bowl. Jade's nerves had been worn dangerously thin, everything seeming like an agitation. Green sparks danced around as she once again tried to get the blocker collar off, growling in anger. "I'm not a DOG!" Jade kicked the door as hard as she could, leaving another huge dent in the heavy frame.  
She pulled her hands through her hair, surprised when she felt a bobby pin. At this point she didn't care, trying to unlock the collar. Her ears perked at a soft click before throwing the collar as far as she could from the crate. She tried the same on the door lock, but became so agitated she opted to kicking the door lock forcefully till it snapped off, skidding across the room.  
Jade climbed out, stomping to the door and slamming it open as she walked out the door only to hear someone," 'ey! Get bac-" Jade growled at the lumbering man before holding up her hand and swiping quickly. The man flew down the hall into a door and fell to the floor bloody. Jade continued down the hall, sparks flickering as slowly she edged into shadows.

"Jade is in trouble." Rose sat up. The group was riding in a trailer of a semi truck, hoping on sneaking into a Betty Crocker 'factory'. It turns out the Felt hideout was hidden under the local baked goods complex. "She is being pulled in by the darker side of her ability."  
"Is she going to end up puking sludge for a week?" Dave asked, remembering when it happened to Rose.  
"I had a bad reaction. She will probably be fine, but only if she is stopped quickly enough. Sadly, we still have 20 minutes until we reach the building and we still have to get inside and past security."  
"What if me and Aradia work together and stop time just for the truck? That would cut the time down by a lot."  
"Actually, we could have you to do that until we are past security and it would solve a few other problems."  
"Heard you needed some time." Aradia smiled," I think the plan would work, but we would have to go fast in relation to what it feels to those unaffected. In fact, let's try right now!" Aradia took a firm stance hands in front of her.  
"Slick, we're pausing time, so you have to go fast," Dave took a deep stance, palms facing Aradia's," Three, two, one..." Red light up the trailer, all clocks on pause as the trailer raced down the road.  
"Hey, is that my cloak?" Sollux asked confused as he helped keeping them from sliding due to Slick's crazy driving.  
"No, it's mine." Dave stated, staying focused. Aradia held in a laugh.

Jane listened through the cabinet door as the adults seemed to try to figure out where she was. It was frightening knowing that her only safety was hiding in a cabinet. She heard the door slam and several things fall over. There were a few shouts, but they ended quickly with loud thuds and thumps. There was the sound of sniffing and the cabinet door was tossed open. Jane's eyes went wide at the sight of the girl that stood in front of her. Piercing green eyes looked over Jane as dark gray creeped up the girl's arms and dog legs. Her dog ears were already gray and sparks danced around her.  
"I-I... Uh..." Jane stuttered, unable to come up with anything.  
"Hm..." the girl picked her up, pulling her out of the cabinet. She held Jane in her arms," You're an experiment, right? What's your name?"  
"I-it's Jane. Who are you?"  
The girl walked out of the room, still carrying Jane," I'm Jade. You're the life girl. I remember reading the file."  
Jane looked up," What file?"  
"You're an experiment testing a mutagen powder based on tests from Project BETA. They gave it you along with chloroform. They spent time trying to perfect it before giving it to you and three others," a man ran towards then, Jade shifting Jane to one arm before doing a motion with her arm, tossing the man into the wall. Jane flinched at the thud, eyes widening at the sight of so much blood," let's see, oh yeah. You and three others were forced into this to test if it worked before they gave it to their boss. I hid a bunch of the files incase they're needed. You should be fine though, but the effects are irreversible. Any questions?"  
"Where are we headed?"  
"Off to get Jake, Dirk, Roxy and John out of here." Jade sniffed the air, seeming to follow a path.  
"What's this?" Jane tapped the gray on her arms.  
Jade looked at her arms a moment," It's the effect of using the darker side of my abilities. I'll be fine. Don't worry, it's not contagious, but from what I know I might need help."  
"What did you do?"  
"I needed more strength to bust out, but I'm fine." Jade gave Jane a reassuring smile.  
"I should walk so you can save your strength." Jane stated. Jade put Jane down, continuing with Jane by her side as she sniffed her way down the hall. Two men came running down the hall. Jade growled at them, sparks picking up. As soon as the men were close Jade punched the first sending him flying back and the second was hit hard over the head. Blood was smeared around the hall and gray spread further. "Jade?"  
Jade leaned against the wall a moment," I'm fine. Never felt better." Jade sniffed the air," John's close. John!" Jade turned her head to the air vent. In a flash of green Roxy and John appeared in front of them.  
"Roxy!" Jane hugged her friend. The group looked over to Jade.  
"Who're you?" Roxy asked.  
"I'm Jade." Jade was completely gray from ears to toes, looking more like a scary werewolf than the girl who was trying to save them. Jade sniffed the air, taking off down the hall.

Dirk looked around the corner before motioning to Jake. "No one down the hall."  
"That's weird. I wonder why." Jake asked.  
"Probably because they're dead." Jade growled. Jake and Dirk spun around, surprised to see Jade, especially like this.  
"J-Jade?!" Jake stammered.  
"Yes."  
"Why do you look like that?"  
"It doesn't matter, let's get out."  
"Not so fast Jade." Doc Scratch walked forward," You didn't really think it would be that easy, did you?"  
Jade snapped her fingers, teleporting Jake and Dirk to the others," I'm only here to kick your ass."  
Doc Scratch chuckled," You've killed so many today, and yet you claim you aren't a beast. Your father, Jane's mother, several men who kill daily all taken out easily. Don't you find this interesting?"  
Jade threw Doc Scratch against the wall, blood smearing across the wall as Doc fell to the ground, a smirk on his face. "What's so funny Scratch?" Jade growled.  
Doc Scratch laughed, standing up. "You really think you're going to win! It's almost cute." Doc reached for his coat pocket, only to get thrown back again. Blood dripped from Scratch's mouth. "You've really turned into a monster. What would your friends think?"  
Jade glared," I think I'll show them the files. Such a caring man you are, along with Dr. Becquerel Evans Harley and Dr. Gloria Catherine Crocker." Jade swiped her hand, sending Doc flying into the wall," I can't believe my dog shared names with him!"  
Doc stood back up, wobbling back and forth," And now you are mixed with your dog, with no knowledge of which you are more of. I personally think dog." Jade growled, running forward and clocking Doc Scratch.  
"Where are the other files?" Jade stated.  
"What files?"  
"You know what I'm talking about. There are uncovered patches of information, so I'll ask again; where are the other files?!"  
"I'm still doing research believe it or not."  
"I'm not stupid. Where are the files?!"  
"I'm not giving you the files." Doc Scratch smirked before collapsing. The door flung open, Dave and Rose immediately stepped in. They froze, eyes going back and forth between Doc Scratch and Jade.  
"Jade...?" Dave asked cautiously.


End file.
